The Suit
by Frost115
Summary: "I love my family. My family loves the squirrel suit. So if I wear the squirrel suit, they'll love me!" Lynn reads Lincoln's journal and discovers what exactly he goes through while wearing the squirrel suit.
1. Week 1

**Yes I know, ANOTHER no such luck fanfiction? Don't worry, this one isn't going to be Lincoln gets mad and the family must re-earn his trust. It'll be different. I hope you enjoy the read!**

 **Chapter 1**

 _"Hey! Lincoln Loud here. Though you probably knew that already huh? Anyways if you're reading this then GET OUT OF MY ROOM! Hah just joking, I probably gave you my journal. Either that or you somehow opened the lock I put on it, or you tricked Leni into doing it. She can be so easy to fool sometimes, but I love her regardless._

 _Anyways I'm getting off topic. I'll start from the beginning. Currently I'm wearing a suit. Not a tuxedo or anything but a mascot squirrel suit. No I'm not heading for any football game and no I'm not one of those people everyone says is furry, it's a good luck charm. I guess. Why do I believe that you may ask, well I don't. My family believes that. Why again? Let's just say when you want alone time, don't pretend you're bad luck. And especially don't show up to a lucky game dressed like this leading everyone to believe the suit gives you good luck. They were losing for most of the game! How did they even think it was good luck?_

 _Before you ask, or guess, yes I did try convincing them that the suit wasn't good luck. Being outside on a beach day inside a heavy and sweaty mascot suit isn't exactly fun. They didn't believe me, but they didn't exactly believe me he first time when I tried to tell them the truth. That's sorta our thing now. Throwing things out of proportion. Sure usually I'm in the middle of it all and on the recieving end, but hey it always made things interesting! Painfully interesting usually, but I love it. Usually._

 _So now here I am writing in my newest journal I got during my free time away from my sisters. I was going to use it to draw some comics and maybe write Fanfiction on Ace Savvy, but I just needed to let out some steam. Now that I think about it, I didn't really do that. But regardless I feel a little better now. Anyways I needed to think of another plan for the girls to see that the suit isn't good luck. Heh, always the 'man with the plan' huh? I should learn to wait it out a few times. But I'm Lincoln Loud and I always have a plan._

 _Or usually have a plan._

 _So I decided to attend Luan's comedy show. Well more like she invited me because she needed her good luck charm. Hey it was the day after the beach so I didn't expect anyone to have forgotten about it already. Luckily people assumed the squirrel was part of the act so nobody paid too much attention to me, except for the little kid that kept trying to climb my head. Her act went like normal. Nothing happened, she joked, they laughed, she threw a pie at me (which she asked for permission to do earlier and I said it was ok), and then she thanked the audience before bowing while everyone clapped. Seemed like a normal day. It should've been as easy as 'did my good luck help?' and she would say 'not really' and then I'd throw away the suit._

 _Then this guy with a huge chin in a suit (tuxedo) came up to her. I didn't hear much of what they said, but I did see the Luan's eyes widen after he said something, and then her jaw drop followed by a squeal of delight when he handed her a case. She even hugged the man, who patted her back with a smile before departing. Curious, I went to ask her what happened._

 _Turns out that the guy had a son who was in the hospital, keyword being was. According to the man, his son was fighting some disease (with a long name that I don't remember what it was) and the doctors believed he had only a week to live. The kid, being a fan of comedy, began surfing the internet for comedians (he wanted to spend his last moments laughing i guess) and he eventually settled on Luan's video channel. He watched her through the week until his supposed last day, but instead of dying he somehow pulled through and fully recovered. The man believed that Luan's comedy and high spirits gave the boy the strength to fight off the disease and as a reward (for Luan giving a signature that was to be given to the kid) the man gave her a thousand dollars, which she gracefully accepted._

 _If you ask me, the man was sketchy. Why didn't he bring the kid? Luan said it was because although the kid recovered, he was still in no condition to move around too much and was resting at home. Yeah right. Sounds like a load of mustard if you ask me. But the beaming smile Luan had all day (and week) was too much for me to voice my skepticism. Besides, the man gave her money so who was he to complain? Heck Luan even gave me fifty dollars as a thanks for being her good luck charm. Overall it was a pretty good day. Lucky? Not really, I could probably fish out 50 in a month of searching the couch cushions. But Luan would disagree._

 _My first plan was a bust. So what do I decided to do? Try again of course! This time I went to Lola's pageant. I mean, what could've happened? They always go the same anyways! Lola attends, she wins, she gets her trophy, she leaves. What would my supposed good luck do? Make her win even better? How was that possible?_

 _I'll tell you how! Lindsey Sweetwater! Lola's longtime rival! Of course the one time I wear the suit of good luck is when she decides to do the unthinkable: Cheat. Of course they judges only find out because they went to the back to discuss if they should kick out the 'weird squirrel boy' only to see her sabotaging Lola's hair spray can by replacing it with spray paint. Of course Lindsey is from that moment banned from ever competing in any future pageants. And of course Lola had to have heard all of this and happily inform me that my suit not only saved her skin (and her hair) but got her rival disqualified forever! Of course she won. Maybe that last one was obvious, but I was secretly hoping for her to lose. Maybe it was harsh, but it wasn't as harsh as those rash marks forming on my skin now. My reward this time was a genuine hug from Lola as well as her acceptance speech being dedicated to how thankful she was for me to attend. It was a great speech and all, but all the odd looks I got and the awkward clap (that Lola didn't seem to notice) afterwards for me left much to be desired._

 _I needed a different tactic or I would be digging my hole even deeper. Then it clicked! If I could prove that maybe it was ONLY the suit that was lucky and not necessarily me wearing it, then maybe they'd just bring the suit along and let me be. So when Luna invites me to her concert, I was more than happy to say yes. Plan with a ridiculously long name was a go._

 _What did I do you ask? Simple. I went to her concert, sneakily took off my suit, and positioned it so that it looked like I was watching it. I put some googly eyes on the eye holes just in case she looked directly at me. Knowing my plans (or not) you may ask how did this fail? Well it didn't, kinda. Luna was fooled the whole time while she watched the band members play. I grew excited when they invited her on stage to jam with them. I was very happy when they threw roses and confetti (where did they even get that) at her once her solo finished. Everything worked! Except it didn't._

 _I wanted to confirm my victory on our walk home (as I snuck back into the suit before we met up) so I casually said 'wow pretty lucky day huh?' She threw my hopes out the window when she shrugged her shoulders and with a bored expression said 'meh it was alright bro.' What? I asked her what did she mean and she said that always happened in the concerts she went. She was super excited to have me go because she was hoping the squirrel suit would cause something epic to happen, but it didn't. Now she was more disappointed than happy. Not upset, but not happy either._

 _My biggest mistake was admitting that I took off the suit. In my defense the guilt was eating me alive and she asked if I was ok when I began sweating. I should've just pretended the suit didn't work anymore! I'm so dumb. Anyways she at first looked furious, but then she smiled. She said while she is mad that I took off the suit, she is also happy that it meant that it was Lincoln's fault (and not the suit) that nothing lucky happened. Essentially it meant that their good luck was still lucky. She told me I could make it up to her by attending her next concert (which was the next day somehow) with the promise of NOT taking off the suit. Of course I agreed._

 _You won't believe what happened. That was sarcasm by the way. Mick Swagger himself had attended and when she was pulled into the stage to jam (like normal) he was impressed with her skills. He pulled her aside after the concert, shooing away the weird squirrel boy, and she nearly fainted from shock. Again I didn't hear what they talked about, but Luna wouldn't stop smiling. They exchanged emails and he promised to give her an excellent recommendation to a friend of his. Before departing, he added that if she played her cards right, she'd be a bigger sensation that him. If having your idol say that you have the potential to be better than then wouldn't boost your ego and happiness then I don't know what would. She was so happy that we went to burpin' burger where she got both of us burgers. She even allowed me out the suit while we ate. How generous. Again, sarcasm. Somehow she didn't notice the rash marks though. Either that or she didn't care. No, what am I saying of course she didn't notice because if she did she would've said something! My thinking isn't so clear, probably from the heat this cruddy suit has. It's like a furnace in here!_

 _Anyways I sensed a pattern. Maybe the suit really is good luck? No that was the same dumb logic my sisters had. Not that they're dumb or anything, just gullible. I had to run one more test just to be sure. So instead of going with any of my sisters, I decided to go take a walk in the squirrel suit. Maybe break it in because I had the feeling I would be wearing this thing for a while. Hopefully not for too long though._

 _Typical walk. I went to the park first where the parents kept me away from their kids and the police took me to the side for questioning to be sure I wasn't someone named Pedro File or something. Must've been an adult because they let me be when they realized I was a kid. Went for a walk by the woods where some teenagers playing soccer laughed at me and threw acorns at me. Then I finally sat by the lake where birds attempted to land on my head and I barely avoided white pellets of bird remainders. On my walk home I ran into Clyde's parents who didn't recognize me inside the suit and avoided eye contact as I walked past them. Oh well. Then I get home to find that Charles mistook the door matt for his toilet and I spent a few minutes outside trying to hose off the aftermath. Finally I get inside, take a nice shower doing my best to clean the increasing rashes, put on my pajamas and throw the suit in the corner until the next day._

 _So the suit definitely wasn't lucky, at least for me. Yet three of my sisters had strokes of luck while I was wearing it and the one time I didn't was when nothing new happened. So it was lucky for everyone BUT me? I kinda feel cheated. Cheated and sweaty. Worse of all was that school resumes tomorrow. I forgot to mention we were on spring break the for this week. Yup I spent all of spring break in a dumb costume._

 _You know I've been calling it a suit the whole time but it's actually just a costume! A suit would be giving it a nice title, but this thing hasn't done anything for me to give it such a good name! Whatever. I'm tired. Hopefully my family won't make me wear it to school. I don't know what I'd do. Surely they will make an acception for the sake of my school reputation._

 _They love me and I love them. I know they won't make me wear it. Anyways I'm going to sleep. -Lincoln"_

Lynn closed the notebook, doing her best to calm her ragged breathing. Rashes? Lincoln was forming rashes? Not only that but he hated the suit? While she'd admit that wearing a mascot outfit wasn't exactly the funnest thing to do, he wasn't complaining (that much) so she assumed he was ok with it. Besides, the good luck should've worked for him too right? Obviously that wasn't the case.

She took a glance at the journal she stole from his room. He knew her well enough to guess she tricked Leni into unlocking it for him, she told Leni it was a journal lock she bought for Lincoln and she lost the key. Yet she somehow let all of this go through right under her nose? It's been around 4 weeks since the beach day. Well… Actually it's been only a day since they went to the beach, but she was referring to they day he first wore the suit.

A knock on the door jolted Lynn out of her state of shock and she immediately shoved the journal under her pillow. "Come in!" she yelled. The door opened and Lynn paled at the familiar face.

"Hey Lynn, have you seen my writing journal? I can't find it." Lincoln said. Lynn shook her head rapidly and gave a nervous smile. Why was she nervous not even she knew. Lincoln's eyes squinted a bit before he shrugged. "If you see it, let me know." He said as he turned and closed the door behind him. She could hear him going to the room next door to ask his other sisters.

Most of them were trying to sleep at this time since it was a school day. Most of them also slammed the door in his face since not everyone enjoyed being woken up by a boy in a squirrel suit.

oOoO

 **Author's Note = This story was inspired by the FanFiction "How can you forgive us?" by King Genocide so I strongly recommend you give that story a read (especially if you don't like the direction my story will go). While it's basically the same concept, I'll be taking a different approach soooooooo bear with me here. :D**

 **Not sure how often I'll be able to update. Not even sure if I should've uploaded this before finishing a few chapters first, but hey the reviews and likes are like my fuel so please leave a review! Especially if you notice a grammar error, or maybe a suggestion on what should happen. Though (kinda spoiler warning) all the chapters will be in this format, reading another entry with Lynn's thoughts about it.**

 **Anyways I hope you have a wonderful day!**


	2. Week 2

**Chapter 2**

" _What a week I had. So to begin yes they did force me to go with the suit. Well not forced but more like guilt tripped me into it by saying how if they don't get a good grade them they'll understand or how it was ok I had favorites in the family. Guess they found out about the 'luck' some of my other sisters had (like Luan). Man I'm such a sucker for puppy dog eyes. Of course that doesn't mean they hate me! They just really like the suit. Probably more than they love me._

 _...Woah where did that come from?_

 _Anyways yeah imagine having to explain to your best friend why you're coming to school in a big smelly squirrel suit. I didn't tell him it was because of my sisters of course (don't want him telling his fathers) I just told him it was good luck. When he asked what made it good luck I told him it brought good luck to everyone BUT me. He looked at me like I was crazy and I said I was willing to throw away my life (like Ace Savvy did in issue 22) for the sake of others. He said it was a noble cause and promised to stick by my side for it. I'm so lucky to have him._

 _As for my other friends they weren't so nice. I can't blame them for banning me (and Clyde) from the table again. They said I smelled like a mixture of sweat and dog poop, I could've sworn I cleaned it all off. They had a reputation to keep afterall. Whatever reputation they meant I had no clue. They also said I may scare away any girls. The even avoided me during gym when I wasn't wearing it! Made me happy that Ronnie had moved away not too long ago, or she'd either mock me for wearing such a dorky outfit or beat everyone else up for mocking me. Or both. Maybe I do miss her._

 _Of course Chandler had saw me and couldn't resist giving me a look of disgust while saying he's never inviting me to any future parties. How'd he even know it was me under the suit? Good riddance is what I said. Well I didn't say it more like i thought it really loudly. Chandler's friends on the other hand cracked their knuckles as he left saying 'have fun' to them. Poor Clyde tried defending me but ended up with a wedgie. I on the other hand received a beating. Good thing the squirrel suit absorbed most of the blows. That is until a bat rolled in out of nowhere and they wised up to remove the bead piece off my suit. You can probably guess what happened next. I swear I think some people cheered them on._

 _Since the suit masked all of my bruises nobody questioned what happened to me. Clyde was left mostly free of any damage except a damaged ego. Meanwhile my rashes were now a slight shade of purple and I was now sporting a black eye which thankfully was hidden behind the suit mostly. It looked like I was squinting my right eye all of the time though. Not that they'd notice it anyways since they didn't notice my rashes._

 _Clyde offered to walk me home, but I refused saying I didn't want my smell rubbing off him. Also I didn't want him getting involve in case Chandler's friends decided to come for seconds. To be honest I was expecting it with the rotten luck I was having. The walk home was eerily peaceful as Chandler's friends never arrived. I was tempted to call it luck, that is until a big dog chased me all the way back home. Good thing Charles was inside._

 _My sister Lucy, somehow not hearing the barks, jump scared me (like usual) and asked me to go with her to Haikus poem reading party. What exactly is a 'poem reading party' I had no clue. I told her I had homework to do so I couldn't and she understood, until she pointed out i had no bookbag on me. I look outside and the big dog was tearing open my bookbag and eating up my unfinished math assignment. When did he snatch it off me? I obviously didn't feel it because if this squirrel suit._

 _Now with no excuse, and no homework, I was dragged into her party and it was as if I was in a room full of Lucys. No offense Lucy. It went just as you'd expect, they were in a circle and they read each other poems and talked about dark spirits. I didn't see the 'party' in this poem reading party. Luckily nobody mentioned the squirrel boy this time. Probably out of respect of Lucy._

 _I didn't bother getting my hopes up when we both were walking home and I asked her how did it go (since I genuinely had no idea how these things usually go) and she informed me that usually Haikus mother would either come downstairs to turn on the light to offer snacks (that was a bad thing?) or she would be singing loudly nearby forcing them to end before everyone went. So in other words it was lucky she didn't do either of those._

 _She thanked me for remaining respectfully quiet through the readings and clapping when they clapped. She said she'd try out some new ritual to keep away evil spirits from me. That's cool I guess. I wonder if it'll repel the suits weird luck. Oh now there I go thinking it actually works! Lincoln loud knows there is no such thing as luck. Whatever is going on could probably be an evil spirit who specifically hates me. That's more likely than just luck. It's a curse? Does that mean Lucy is going to repel it? You know what maybe Lucy's gift is the best gift ever! I can't wait!_

 _Anyways so yeah I went to bed after I got home, Dad made some really good soup from the leftovers of yesterday but I wasn't very hungry. I don't think i got any sleep. It was weird because I wasn't uncomfortable or anything, I was just cozy and snuggly but my brain refused to sleep. I was just laying there with my eyes closed for hours. Does that count as sleep?_

 _Next morning I was the zombie squirrel boy. If I didn't remember the proper morning protocol (wait in line for bathroom, eat breakfast, run to vanzilla) I probably would've marched through the house wondering where I was. I was so sleepy that I almost forgot my squirrel suit. Lucky for me Lola reminded me before we left and Lori was kind enough to wait._

 _That was sarcasm by the way. You probably can't tell from my writings._

 _What nobody noticed was that my torn up bookbag was still in the front door. They all ended up stepping on it on their rush to vanzilla. Whatever I could've salvaged from it was now ruined along with my math homework. What was I gonna do? Tell the teacher a dog ate my homework? Who would still believe that age old lie?_

 _Maybe I just didn't notice last time but everyone was making an effort to avoid me today. They avoided eye contact and gave me space like if I was super overweight and needed extra room. Everyone scooted away from me during class (except for Clyde) and the teacher didn't say anything to me all day, except when I revealed I didn't do my homework. Got no detention, but the grade would be reflected in my report card later. Still wasn't allowed to sit with my friends yet either but I expected that. Chandler's friends grew in size too as they threw me in the dumpster where they said I belonged. Clyde wasn't so lucky this time as he got the same treatment._

 _After school Clyde questioned if the suit really was good luck and I just said it worked well on my sisters. He said he wasn't getting any good luck and that in fact he's getting bad luck now. He brought up a good point, why wasn't the luck working for him? Was my bad luck cancelling his good luck? Now it just wasn't being fair!_

 _Leni offered to clean up the suit for me. I was partially thankful since it meant nobody would bug me about the smell, but it also meant I had less of an excuse to ditch it. Well I spent the rest of the day without the suit on while she cleaned it so it would in her words totes smell like autumn. After that I was able to read Ace Savvy in my underwear like normal. Thanks Leni for the great day. Nobody noticed the black eye somehow though, but that was probably a good thing. That and I spent most of my day in my room to be sure nobody asked for favors._

 _The rest of the week went the same. I went to school, people avoided me, I got picked on by a growing number of people, and finally I got home for one of my sisters to ask for a favor. Oddly enough being home was the normal part. I don't wanna brag too much but I juggle around my sisters a lot to help them out, so the suit at least let's me do that. Maybe it isn't all that bad?_

 _Who am I kidding? It's awful. I could do that without this thing on!_

 _Yesterday I went with Lynn to her next baseball game and to nobody's surprise she won a perfect game. Since I was still in the mascot suit the coach found out it was me who stole their mascot outfit while Lynn was being carried off by a happy crowd. I forgot how I got this suit in the first place. I got detention and a fine when I refused to give it back, whatever they do to me was nothing compared to what Lynn and/or Lori would do of they find out I gave up the suit. Either that or they'd blow things too far by stealing it back or something._

 _Today I helped mom and dad grocery shop and big shock everything was on sale. Who could possibly think twelve for the price of one is a good business move, even if it is just toilet paper (which our family always has a constant need for). We even had enough leftover for a pack of vanilla ice cream, which was also on sale. Of course it was for me but c'mon I'm Lincoln, of course I'm gonna share… after I've had around half. Maybe it'll help with the sweating._

 _Oddly enough nothing bad happened. I mean, most of the parents kept their children away from me and security was keeping an eye on me the whole time (which my parents didn't notice) but after two weeks of this I've gotten used to it mostly. Again, maybe it's taking it easy on me._

 _So now I'm beginning to wonder if I should try out something else. Obviously this won't just blow over for a while as much as I hate to admit it. I might as well get comfortable because I'm gonna be here for a while. So now I'm planning to-"_

"What are you doing?"

Lynn's quick reaction saved her from both screaming out-loud (by covering her mouth before her scream) and from throwing the book out as her arms flailed up. She immediately threw the book under her pillow and took a glance to her side. There Lucy was, holding the top of her coffin bed up with one of her arms, staring at Lynn like she wasn't even sleeping. Lynn laid down on the pillow and gave a (unconvincing) smile. "Nothing!" She loudly whispered.

Lucy's expression didn't change. "Wasn't that Lincoln's journal?" She asked. Lynn remained smiling for a few moments before she dropped it and sighed. "Why do you have his journal?"

Lynn turned away as she fished out the journal from her pillow and held it close to her. She couldn't let Lucy see what was in it, at least not until she's finished it herself. Who knows how she'll handle knowing they're hurting Lincoln this much. "I… I wanted to see if there was something he really wanted as a gift. You know, for his birthday." That was her original plan for stealing his journal in the first place, and maybe she'd get to learn some juicy things of her brother as a bonus. Looking back, it was kinda mean.

Lucy put her hand under her chin. "Good thinking. But isn't his birthday tomorrow?" Lucy informed. Lynn pretended to gasp in shock, which Lucy sighed. "I already got him a gift. You better hurry though, he might get mad if you don't get him anything."

" _And he'll stop attending my events with the suit"_ Lynn thought. She didn't say that, but she was sure Lucy was thinking it. Come to think of it, has Lincoln had any 'alone time' he wanted so badly after that day at the beach? How long has it been? If Lynn remembered correctly, it would mean Lincoln has been wearing the suit for almost a month now. Eventually his entries would reach the present. In fact if he's been consistently updating every Sunday, it would mean he needed to update it today, which would explain why he was looking for it.

Lynn gave off a yawn. "We should go to bed, we got school in the morning. Rest well Lynn." Lucy said as she leaned down and closed the lid on her coffin. Lynn realized she couldn't stay up all night just reading Lincoln's journal. She didn't want to skim the entries, she needed to take in all the information. Skimming it could result in her missing something, so she needed to take her time with this so maybe...

Maybe she can fix this.

Lynn laid down and was about to doze off, which she can do extremely quickly, but realized she didn't finish reading the 2nd entry. " _One more…"_ She thought to herself before reaching for the journal she left near the edge of her bed and flipping back to the page she was on. It took her a second to find where she left off.

" _-ask Lisa to modify the suit a bit. Knowing her she either won't help because she's realized how dumb this whole situation is, or she won't help because she won't want to damage the good luck on the suit. Either way, she probably won't initially help me. I was going to begin planning ways to convince her, but I just had another thought._

 _If she says she doesn't believe the good luck anymore, then it means she didn't see a pattern or found evidence that it's all just a bunch of baloney. That would mean I should just throw out the suit and my family will eventually realize that too, or maybe Lisa can help me convince then after I throw it out. Problem solved. Honestly I should've done that after the beach day before they started enjoying the suit. But if she says she doesn't wanna harm the suit, it means she found evidence that the suit really is lucky. In that case…_

 _...I don't know what I'll do. The suit hurts me, but it helps my family, but it hurts my friends, but it makes my family happy. What can I do? I know last week I said I wouldn't know what to do, but for once in my life I'm not sure what to do completely. No plan could help me this far in._

 _All I can hope is that Lisa says she doesn't believe in the suit. I'll trust her professional opinion. She'd never lead us astray. I hope she can help regardless of what happens. -Lincoln"_

Lynn closed the book and put it under her pillow. She did her best not to think about her brother being lost, and hurt, and miserable as she attempted to drift off. She couldn't sleep as quickly as she normally could that night. In fact, she didn't sleep at all. Though, she didn't complain since she felt she deserved it.

* * *

 **Author's note = I'm PLANNING on making this 4 chapters and MAYBE an epilogue. I'm still not sure since (knowing my history with making long stories) I don't wanna abandon this story mid-way. I already have most of the story written anyways.**

 **Anyways, thanks everyone for showing so much support. I was worried this'd be seen as just another No Such Luck fanfiction which (as I mentioned to some people in PM) I don't even see as that bad of an episode. Sure what they did was kinda messed up, but it was never as bad as these stories tend to show them. Plus I'm pretty sure the 'we sold your things' part was just a joke.**

 **TylerChavis97:** Thanks! I'm very happy about that since I worked the hardest on chapters one and four (which I'm still proof reading).

 **King Genocide:** Thanks buddy. You're story is very good too (which is why I encourage everyone to give it a read) and the concept is what really pulled me in. I can't thank you enough for that :)

 **Cabgrant** : Sorry not sorry. xD

 **Codymitchell1** : Yeah I got to thinking like what if it really is good luck? Is that a good thing or a bad thing for Lincoln? Thanks for the support and I'll definitely update within a weekly bases.

 **StolenMemes77** : Hopefully I can deliver on your expectations. ;)

 **Asylum117** : How do you think you'd react to having to wear a suit for so long? xD Don't worry though, Lincoln is one tough kid. Maybe :)

 **DreadedCandiru2** : I wasn't sure if Lincoln would know what a Pedophile is, so I decided he'd remain oblivious to they're questions. xD

 **jedssm** : Don't worry, Lincoln won't become suicidal nor will he go on a killing spree. xD

 **DarthSidious04** : Lincoln isn't a very bright kid sometimes. Plus he has multiple reasons such as what his family thinks and his tendency to NOT do the obvious solution to his problems. Watching a few episodes shows that Lincoln (and his sisters) throw things out of proportion often xD

 **Omega Ultra** : I agree. I tried writing it in a way where it makes it look like the sisters simply do NOT know that they're hurting him so much and not where they simply do not care (though Lincoln might assume otherwise). And yeah, Lincoln is definitely like his sisters sometimes (on episodes where he isn't the main focus). I'm not the best writer so I may not have portrayed it the way I wanted too, but I hope I didn't come across as Cliche. Thanks for the advice :D

 **Bh3234729** : Don't worry, I have most of the story ready. Just want to re-read it and read some suggestions before I add them in case I decide to change something.

 **ElvisF231** : Thanks buddy!

 **Guest1** : Yeah I agree. No such luck was a good concept but not so well executed. My least favorite episode is One of the Boys because simply it had a lot of potential (a male pageant kid? I wanna hear what Lexx [or male Lola] has to do!) and it wasn't anywhere near the expectations I had for it. Of course not all of them can be perfect, not to mention all the pain the cast goes through to pump out one episode, so I NEVER feel it is justified to attack the crew.

 **Guest2** : I know absolutely nothing about wrestling, except that John Cena was a funny meme, so if I were to write this out, it'd be terrible. Funny thing is though that I do mention wrestling in this story in chapter three I believe, but it isn't anything relevant xD

 **Guest3** : Will do!

 **I hope you all have a lovely day and an amazing thanksgiving (if you celebrate that). Have a good one :D**


	3. Week 3

**Small note: The journal entry is a little later in this chapter, but there is definitely more journal reading to do! Just thought I'd warn you. Also I completely forgot about the whole 'kiddy table adult table' thing, so let's just pretend it doesn't exist for now. Nothing major would change anyways.**

 **Chapter 3**

It was an odd morning for Lynn Loud. For one she was usually a morning person. She would wake up and be ready to tackle the day head on, as soon as she did her business in the bathroom. Today however, she was considering ditching school just to lay in bed for the remainder of the day, until Lincoln's birthday. Maybe she'd just continue reading the next section while everyone else was busy at school learning about the Aztecs or something. But she knew that would be called slacking off, and that was simply something Lynn never did.

Lynn wiped the sand off her eyes and gave her body a good stretch before plopping off the bed. At that moment is when the coffin Lucy called a bed opened up and Lucy sat up not unlike a vampire waking up. Lynn always had to resist the urge to roll her eyes at her little sister's silly antics. "Morning" she said as her hand reached under her bangs, presumably to wipe her eyes as well. Lynn gave her a wave as she stood up and began making her bed.

Lucy stepped out her coffin and started doing the same. "You look awful, did you sleep last night?" Lucy asked. Lynn didn't turn around as she grumbled a response. Just as Lynn finished, Lucy walked behind her. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were slacking off on your sleep."

Lynn responded by flinging her pillow at Lucy, who didn't flinch (or she did and Lynn couldn't see it) as it hit her head and flopped to the floor. "Ow" she said with a small yet smug smile. Lynn grumbled as she walked over and tossed the pillow onto her bed as she headed out. Lucy followed behind.

Today Lynn was 3rd in line, right behind Lana and Lola who was probably already inside. She did always (or at least tried to) get in first to make sure she had enough time for her hair. Soon enough another door opened and both Luan and Luna stepped out and got behind Lucy in line. By this point Lola got out and Lana was inside, which was never good for however was immediately following behind since Lana tended to leave her mark in the bathroom. Lynn realized why Lucy had that smug look, she wanted to distract Lynn from the fact that Lana would be next and that would leave Lynn to face the fumes per say. But Lynn was too tired to care.

Once inside she resisted the urge to gag. Did she eat a spicy burrito again? Regardless she did her business albeit a bit slower than usual. The memory of that journal and the fact that she stayed up most of the night left her feeling less energetic than she'd ever admit. Once she finished she quickly splashed water into her face and gave herself a small encouragement chant (which consisted of 'you're number one! No more number two!') and flung open the door. All of her sisters who hadn't gone were already in line, well all except…

"Anybody seen Lincoln?" She asked as Lucy went inside and shut the door. Lisa, who was near the back of the line, rubbed her eyes as she responded.

"I believe our brother unit i _sh_ _sh_ till in hi _sh_ recuperation chamber" Lisa said. Lynn took a glance at Lincoln's bedroom. Was he still asleep? Come to think of it, she hasn't seen Lincoln in line for the bathroom in a while. It would be hard to miss him in his… squirrel outfit. That thought left a bad taste in her mouth. Maybe he simply needed more time getting up to out in the suit? No, he'd probably have his bathroom time before putting in the thing.

Lynn decided her stomach took priority over her curiosity at the moment as she headed downstairs to prepare herself breakfast. She opened the fridge and found leftover pizza from yesterday. Some sucker forgot to hide it before leaving it inside! "Hah! Score!" She cheered at her… stroke of luck. She pretended to not see it as she reached for the cereal and milk instead.

Soon afterwards, the whole family came downstairs. Lincoln was oddly the last one down, wearing his good luck suit. Immediately when he reached the stairs Lynn heard Lori thank Lincoln for the pizza she found in the fridge. It seemed to obvious to them that it was his doing that Lynn found it scary. She was just like them not too long ago.

Lynn sat the farthest away from Lincoln. It wasn't that her brother that made her uncomfortable, it was that suit. It just felt so odd that everyone was so… alright with a squirrel mascot sitting at the table doing absolutely nothing. Literally doing nothing. "Bro aren't you gonna eat?" Lynn asked.

Lincoln's eyes went to her. He was squinting. No, he had a black eye. Wait no he had two? Surely his black eye would've healed by now. Did he get a new one? She made a note to beat down Chandler and his friends later. "Are you crazy? That would mean he'd have to take off the suit!" Lola exclaimed. The rest of the table, minus Lincoln, either nodded or murmured in agreement.

Lincoln didn't say nor do anything. His eyes just went back to the empty plate he got himself. Lynn felt her heart strings get tugged. Was that submission? Was it defeat? ...Was is misery? Lynn did her best to contain her emotions as she slowly ate the rest of her suddenly bland cereal.

Whenever she peeked up at him, he was doing the exact same thing. Nothing. Like he was a statue. While the rest of the family lively chatted about the upcoming days, including Lincoln's birthday which oddly enough they didn't think to include him in that chat, Lincoln just stared at the nothingness of his plate. His arms laid hunt by his sides. Was he… blinking?

Lynn shook her head. Of course he's blinking! That'd be weird if he wasn't. She probably couldn't see it because he was squinting so much. No it was a black eye. No what is it!? Lynn was tempted to rip off the stupid thing just to check. Heck she should be doing that right now, but something told her she needed to know more before jumping into that. As much as she hated it, she needed to wait just a little longer.

As soon as they all finished eating they all raced to Vanzilla. Lynn lagged behind, trying to get a good look at Lincoln. Though no matter how slow she went, Lincoln seemed to stay behind her. He probably just didn't really care since any spot was a bad spot with the suit on.

Lynn made sure that she sat next to the only empty spot. Unlike before where she wanted to be far away, not she felt the need to be close to her brother. Lynn wanted to talk to her brother, and maybe knock some sense into into her sisters, but she couldn't at least not yet. She wanted to read all of the journal entries. She NEEDED to know how much pain she caused him so she can begin making it up to him. He could survive just one more school day with it… hopefully.

The whole ride there was a blank for Lynn. She couldn't get a good view of Lincoln with his suit on, but he was still just silently sitting down staring straight ahead. The whole vanzilla was full of her sisters talking (except for Leni who had motion sickness and Lori who was driving) and Lincoln seemed to find it more interesting to look at the back of the car seat ahead of him. This unnerved her and she placed an arm on Lincoln's shoulder.

He didn't react. Lynn assumed it was because of the suit. Hopefully.

While the school day progressed Lynn had tuned out. Her body going into full auto pilot as her mind was consumed by Lincoln's situation. The situation she threw her brother into. The worse part is that she knew Lincoln would try to make her feel like it was his fault. While he did contribute to this mess, it was still her (and her sisters') fault for letting it get this far. Regardless at who is to blame, she was going to help. Soon.

The end of the school day arrive and Lynn was ready to run home… if she didn't have soccer practice today. She was well prepared to ditch, her perfect record meaning nothing to her at the moment, if her coach didn't run into her. She knew the man could tell when someone was sick so she couldn't fake it and he'd give her a tough time before letting her go. So much time that she'd probably leave sooner if she just went to practice. He probably did that on purpose. Oh well, at least it got her mind off things for the moment. Her skills were lacking that day, but she didn't care.

"Home sweet home" Lynn chanted to herself as she went inside. She happily walked inside with determination, she was going to finish that journal and help her bro. Though when she reached her door, she heard sobbing on the other side. She felt her nerves stiffen and her resolve quickly deplete to nothing as she opened the door.

She didn't know what was going on for a second. She processed everything slowly. First she saw Lori standing in the middle of her room. Next she saw the tears going down her cheek. Lastly she saw her holding the journal. Lincoln's journal. She was reading it? She was reading it! Was that bad? Wait! Yes it is! Right!? Lynn slammed the door shut behind her as she lunged for Lori.

"GIVE THAT BACK!" She yelled as she pounced on the journal, managing to grab it while avoiding pouncing on her. Lori didn't react at all (except by continuing to sob) as Lynn landed and held the journal to her chest. She wondered how did she even find it. She clearly hid it under her pillow!

…The pillow she threw at Lucy. Lynn would've punched herself in the face if she wasn't looking at her older sister crying. "H-how long…" she began and Lynn frantically waved her hands in a 'no' motion in an attempt to shush her. The walls were WAY too thin for her to make a scene. "B-but… Lincoln…!"

Lynn looked away. "I know…" Lori looked down. "We've been…" Lynn closed her eyes. "I know…" Lori tried to wipe away the tears, but they just continued coming. "He's been…" Lynn sighed. "I know…" Lori sat down, Lynn taking the chance and sitting next to her. Lori looked at her and Lynn saw genuine fear in her usually brave and strong sister. "What are we gonna do?" She asked. Lynn hugged herself. "I don't know…" Lori looked at the door with fear. "We gotta tell the others!"

Lynn shook her head. Before Lori could protest, Lynn cut her off. "If everyone got involved, we'd all try to 'make it up to him' all at once. I'm pretty sure being bombarded with apologies and compliments will not make it up to him." Lynn said. Lori looked enraged. "So what? We just let our brother suffer?" She asked in a low dark tone. Lynn shook her hands frantically. "N-no! Just… let me finish reading it. I'll get an idea what to do. I swear." Lynn said. Lori looked at Lynn with an unreadable expression.

"Why were you in here anyways?" Lynn asked. Lori looked at the journal in Lynn's hands. "I heard Lincoln's journal went missing and the door was wide open. I couldn't help myself." She admitted. Lynn would've scoffed at the idea of entering someone else's room and invading their privacy, had she not done it herself. "How far are you?" Lori added. "Two entries" Lynn said.

Lori grabbed onto her arm like if she was shy. "I've read three." Lynn held the journal in front of her and took a glance at Lori. She gave a small nod and Lynn opened it.

" _The suit must be having mercy on me because this week was fairly good. I mean, as good as it can get for somebody in a squirrel outfit. After everything Lisa did to it, it's fairly comfortable now. While I still do get the rashes (or rather the ones I have keep getting worse) and the suit doesn't protect me against the bullies that is Chandler's friends, it was still an improvement over what it was before._

 _So Lisa said it was a great idea to improve the suit. She said she can perhaps enhance the properties while at the same time making it so comfortable that I'd never need to take it off. That thought made me shake a little. Well, it DID make me shake back then. Anyways I told myself I wouldn't be wearing that thing anymore than I needed too, but I still wanted it improved so i made multiple suggestions for her such as some sort holes so the air can more easily enter. She said that was unnecessary but she'd consider it. Spoiler warning, she didn't include any._

 _It was another 'no suit' day for me and I wasn't going to let it go to waste. I took the longest shower I've ever taken, but it did nothing to the rashes. I think they're a little purple now, but they'll go away. Who knows how long Lisa will take anyways? Maybe she'll take a week. A month. A year? Maybe she'll accidentally blow it up? Sorry Lucy, but Lisa just beat you for best gift._

 _I'm not sure if Lisa went to school that day since I took so long that Lori took off without me. Oh well, what's being late to class over being normal for one day. I was in too good of a mood to care honestly. Nobody gave me any looks that day, except for the few that noticed my rashes. Clyde was especially worried, but I told him it'd go away. Besides it didn't itch anymore. It was a little numb though…_

 _I was allowed to sit with my friends again and they seemed happy to have me back. Chandler and his friends never showed up. Nobody looked at me weirdly. No parents no cops no 'good luck' no nothing! I was a prisoner who was being let out! If you looked up happy in the dictionary I'd be there! Ace Savvy himself could swoop down and make me his permanent sidekick and I wouldn't be any happier than before! Ok maybe I'm exaggerating that last part._

 _Of course, it didn't last long once I got home. Everyone was quick to notice the absence of my suit. They said they needed it desperately, especially Lana who was going to try out for the junior wrestling team. I told them all they'd be fine as I (rudely) closed the door on them and laid on my bed to read my comics. Of course I realized my mistake! I forgot to get myself a snack. This great day called for my secretly stored snack compartment I had in the fridge. Right behind all the vegetables where nobody would dare enter._

 _Unfortunately for me I choose the worse time possible to leave my room because I heard my sisters group up in the living room. I could still remember what they all said._

' _There goes our good luck charm'_

' _Imma miss squirrel Lincy. He was totes adorable.'_

' _Harsh, just when I thought I'd get to jazz with my idol.'_

' _I say his old costume really suits him. Haha get it? But seriously this sucks.'_

' _I hope my team can pull through without him. Why couldn't he just man up?'_

' _I already feel the darkness consuming me.'_

' _Whatever, he wants to chicken out then fine!'_

' _I didn't even get a chance with it… jerk.'_

' _Poo-Poo!'_

 _I don't know how long I stood there, but thankfully not long enough for any of them to notice me. They seemed to have an endless amount of rants about me ready, but I zoned out so all I heard was my name while they ranted. The weight of the situation dawned on me. They loved the suit more than me._

 _They loved the suit, more than ME. No. They don't love me at all without the suit! They were gonna kick me out again!? I didn't wanna sleep in the dog house again! It was my worse idea honestly to sleep outside! It was cold and scary and Charles never cleans up in there because they're a bunch of leftovers everywhere! Am I gonna have to go back again? What if they put me up for adoption? Would anybody adopt me? Would they grow sick of me when they realized how much of a selfish brother I was being!?_

 _I knew my resolve then and then. I love my family. My family loves the squirrel suit. So if I wear the squirrel suit, they'll love me! It made so much sense! The suit really was good luck! It was my salvation and I vowed to never abandon it! As soon as I found the strength, I marched over to Lisa and Lily's room and pounded the door like if I was set on fire, shouting like a maniac._

 _I was surprised when Lisa told me the truth. She never was going to upgrade the suit. She told me that she thought the whole luck thing was stupid and she lied to me in order to properly discard it and hope everyone eventually forgets. She said she thought I loved the suit so she avoided telling me her real goals and in her words she pretended to 'indulge in my primitive acts.' She said it was 'for the best' and that it was 'unhealthy' what we were doing. What is she talking about? I felt unhealthy WITHOUT it!_

 _I was on my knees begging her to give it back. I said it really was good luck and I could prove it! She of course didn't believe me but I told her to let me wear it for just a moment and if nothing happened, I'd let her destroy it. She was obviously annoyed when she opened her safe and dragged the thing out. I quickly put it back on with a smile and waited._

 _Of course the suit didn't fail me because not a moment later Lisa's wall phone (when did she install that?) went off and she went to answer it. Long story short, it was the President asking Lisa to build him something in exchange for unlimited access to some weirdly named chemical she couldn't get her hands on. Part of me thought this would mean she'd cause more explosions, but hey seeing your usually stoic sister dance around in joy is its own reward. That, and having her install an air conditioner inside the suit wasn't so bad either. Much better than air-holes I wanted earlier. I'm still not sure how she did it. She said to 'give her a minute' and kicked me out her room. Literally 20 seconds later (after what I could only describe as the sounds of hammers and chainsaws) she opens the door and said she upgraded my suit._

 _First thing I did was go downstairs and asked Lana if she still needed my help. The looks of joy my sisters gave me, especially Lana, had told me what I needed to know. I made the right decision and I must stick with it. Oh and of course she got in, but they thought I was a wrestler and called me the 'nutty squirrel man' or something as they pile-drived me. My back was still sore, but Lana was happy and that's all I could ask for._

 _That's everything I want._

 _Just like that, everything was back to normal. I went to school and everyone avoided me. I was banned from the table again, but they looked more upset than angry. Chandler himself threw me into a dumpster. Yup, pretty normal. Average life of Lincoln Loud. Maybe I'll write a book about it someday._

 _That's how it went for the next few days. Normal stuff. Got two more black eyes, but I can take it. All of Lynn's sporting activities were finally paying off as I learned to (in her words) power through the pain. I also went with Luan to see this used-to-be sick boy and load and behold his favorite animal is a squirrel and that made me the target for all of Luan's jokes and pies. The boy loved it though, and the man gave Luan money so she could perform for his son again. Not sure how much this time and Luan didn't give me any of the money._

 _This Friday was different though. Clyde pulled me aside after school, so Lori left without me but whatever. He told me, no he demanded I stop wearing the suit. He said it wasn't healthy and I was seriously hurting myself. I guess he wanted to make an offer I couldn't refuse because he said I'd either need to choose the suit or my best friend._

 _That made me laugh. The suit was hurting me? No, it was saving me! It was so funny that he didn't see the suit in all it's glory. It's funny how nobody but me will ever know the pleasure of giving joy to others. It was the best joke anybody can tell and Luan should be jealous._

 _All I did was laugh at this. It was the first time I ever laughed until I was clutching my stomach in pain. Was it the rashes? I was rolling around the floor laughing so hard that people nearby backed away from me. Either that or I rolled away, which made me laugh even more. I think Clyde cried a little before he left. It made me chuckle and wipe the tears I had in my eyes. Tears of joy? Tears of Pain? I forgot._

 _Then I laughed again when I realized I couldn't wipe my eyes because of the mask and the black eyes. Best joke ever. I haven't heard from him since. It's ok though, he just doesn't get it. Besides it'll be ok since it'll mean he won't get picked on anymore. Another sacrifice for Lincoln Loud._

 _Anyways I've been trying our sleeping with it on and it works very well surprisingly. I'm going to try showering in it next and maybe eating if I can figure something out. Next week is gonna be good, I can feel it! Now that I think of it, I didn't really give any luck to my older sisters Leni and Lori. Oh and Lily of course! Maybe our pets too! I know who I'm hanging with next!"_

Lynn had just realized she stained the book with her tears. Lori was holding onto her shoulder as if she'd collapse if she let go. Lynn put the book down, tempted to throw it out before anybody else saw it. It was the last entry, but Lincoln had gone another week since this one.

It got progressively worse. What could've possibly happened now? She looked at Lori and she blinked some tears. "He… went with me to the Royal Woods College fair. I got into my dream college with Bobby…"

Lynn looked away. "Did you watch him the whole time?" She asked quietly. Lori shook her head. "Something happened to him, I just know it."

Lynn knew none of it was made up. The harsh words she spoke when she thought he left after his little 'I'm not wearing the suit anymore' announcement were true. She didn't want to hurt him, but she was just so sour at the moment. If she knew he heard, she would've… done nothing. It wasn't that she didn't care about her brother, it's that she didn't know! Right? Well it doesn't matter! Not anymore!

Lynn stood up. "Knowing Lincoln, he probably has another entry somewhere." She said to nobody in particular. He would probably write it somewhere just so he can copy it back on his journal when he found it.

Lori stood up. "And Lincoln?" She asked. Lynn hugged herself, which Lori soon responded by crouching down and hugging her little athletic sister. "Don't worry, we'll fix this."

"...I hope"

* * *

 **Author's Note = Long chapter huh? I'm still not sure if I wanna include an epilogue! I'm leaning towards a no for that, but I'll decide by the time I upload chapter four. Also yes this is pretty short, but I don't think I could pace it well enough for longer than 4 chapters without sacrificing some of my sanity xD**

 **TylerChavis97:** Yeah Clyde and Lincoln are definitely the best of friends! They are so caring for each other :D Also yes eventually they'll realize what they're doing. Eventually.

 **Zoinks81:** Thanks buddy I appreciate it! I was actually debating if I wanted Lori or Lynn to (begin) reading it. I decided it'd be Lynn since she came across as the more "take action" person to me. I included Lori here for that reason, but Lynn will still be the main 'reader' in a sense.

 **StolenMemes77:** Oh trust me, Lynn is definitely getting to that level xD

 **DreadedCandiru2:** (Funny you should say that...) Also yeah Lincoln's eagerness to please his sisters could be his downfall here. :)

 **DarthSidious04:** You'd be surprised how much our brain ignores details when it comes to familiarity. But yeah, Lincoln got unlucky (the irony) that nobody noticed that. (And yes they simply didn't notice it, his sister's aren't heartless xD)

 **Asylum117:** I always found it weird that Lisa went along with the luck incident so easily. She's a scientist no? Well she's also like four xD Also yeah Lynn is more of a tough girl so, while she is incredibly upset of this, she tries to contain her emotions. Lori on the other hand...

 **elmago02:** That's... Actually a pretty good concept. It'd be ironic in the end because in the beginning Lincoln would be trying to convince them it isn't good luck, but in the end it'd be them trying to convince HIM it isn't good luck. I like that idea! Someone should definitely write this story! (Maybe not me since I've done enough with No Such Luck stories)

 **TakeBackTheFalls:** Thanks! This is the main reason I don't wanna write an epilogue since it'd just be 'oh Lincoln we are so sorry!' and some forgiveness things in the end since (spoiler warning?) they're gonna all find out eventually.

 **Harriet546:**...What? You're gonna need to PM me because I got no clue what you're asking. xD

 **Guest1:** In my mind, every goth kid has way-too-happy parents. Maybe that's why they go goth? xD

 **Dread55:** His family isn't heartless, just mostly oblivious to their actions. A lot of episodes is them taking things too far usually. Also Lynn doesn't want him to write more, she just wants the whole story so she can be caught up. It's more of a way so she could know everything she needs to make up to him (since he'll probably leave things out to make her feel better). Also all of this already happened (on a weekly bases), Lynn is just reading it as it was at that point of time. And thanks for the rating btw :D

 **Lincoln Ace Loud:** Is that some reference I don't get or is that Lincoln's superhero persona? Sounds like a pretty good AU xD (Also has the whole 'Lisa chipped everyone with tracking devices' thing something joked on the show or just something we all assumed she does? xD)

 **Guest Stereotype:** Oh yeah I completely forgot about that FanFiction (the Sycopath one). I enjoyed that story too xD Also the popular NSL story (I forgot the name, there is like a million of them) yeah I got the idea of Lisa potentially being the one who realized it's all just dumb from that, but I decided she'd actually try to help instead of being heartless as a lot of the stories here make her out to be xD

 **Guest2:** Oh I didn't mean as a joke to Lincoln, I meant as a joke to the audience. But yeah that'd be pretty messed up for them xD and yeah episodes are usually either a hit or a miss with a few in between. Sometimes it feels like they all just sorta gang up on him and other times it's like he's just another sibling amongst them. I guess it depends if he's the main character in that episode or not. And don't worry, Lynn will figure something out. Thanks :D

 **Anyways I hope you all have a beautiful night/day! I know a lot of you have some finals to do. You can do it don't worry! Anyways have a good one!**


	4. Week 4

**Special thanks to Harriet546 for the idea for one scene in this chapter!**

 **Chapter 4**

It wasn't easy convincing Lori to keep quiet about the journal, but Lynn knew she had to know the full story before they got everyone involved. Besides, she wasn't sure if she even wanted the others to get involved. Leni would cry, Luna would think horribly of herself, Luan would go through a mime phase, and she dare not think of what the younger ones would do (especially Lucy). Not to mention what their parents would do, which could consist of feeling like terrible parents or suddenly smothering Lincoln with gifts and attention. Or both.

Not too long after their little journal session, their parents had returned. Though with them missing the final chapter in Lincoln's journal, they couldn't just eat dinner in peace. They knew it was somewhere in Lincoln's room and Lincoln himself would be downstairs. Lori said she needed to 'text her Boo-Boo Bear' and opted to eat her dinner in her room. Lynn ate with the rest of the family.

Their parents made lasagna this time, but Lynn wasn't sure her stomach could tolerate so much cheese and beans, their fathers secret ingredient, at the moment so she just got a bowl of cereal. She made sure to sit the farthest away from Lincoln. Part of her said it was to be able to watch him from across the table (since seeing him from the side is worse with the suit on), the other part said it's because being so close to what she did was bad.

Lincoln didn't even bother getting a plate this time. Lynn couldn't help but stare in disbelief as Lincoln only looked down at his feet. Either that or the ground since she couldn't get a good view of his eyes. Again it didn't draw attention!? It wouldn't be wise to draw attention to Lincoln, especially considering she wanted to keep quiet about it for now, but she couldn't stand the sight. "H-hey Lincoln" she started before she slapped herself. Now was NOT the time to choke.

Lincoln lifted his head and focused on Lynn. She felt like somebody stabbed her in her heart. His once energetic eyes were now lifeless, like he just realized his favorite superhero isn't real. She held back the tears as she continued. "Why aren't you eating?" She asked.

Luna finished munching on her lasagna and looked over to Lynn with genuine confusion. "We already told you little sis, he'd need to take off his-" She REALLY wasn't having any of it. "I haven't seen you eat in days!" She yelled in frustration.

She heard somebody nearly choke on their food as they all processed what Lynn just said. They all adorned wide eyes of shock and turned to either Lynn or Lincoln. Seemingly they wanted an answer.

Lincoln didn't flinch as he responded. "I eat in my room now." He said. Lynn slammed her fist on the table. "Bullshit!"

"Lynn Jr!"

"Sorry Dad, but he's lying! I know he is!" Lynn yelled. She had to make them see it, even if they couldn't read it. Maybe they'd figure it out on their own?

Lynn couldn't read his expression behind the mask. "I do eat. I swear." He said. Lynn growled in frustration as she pushed her cereal across the table for it to slide to a stop in front of Lincoln. On any other day she would've gloated at how expertly she did that.

"Prove. It."

Lincoln's head faced down to the cereal as if his eyes couldn't turn. Then he looked around and saw they were all giving him semi-worried looks. With a sigh that rivaled Lucy he grabbed the spoon, filled it up with just a little bit of cereal, and brought it up to his face. He used his free hand to bring the mask up ever so slightly, enough so his mouth could be shown. He opened his mouth and…

He was missing a tooth. He was missing a TOOTH! How!? When!? What!? Lynn could only ask herself this as Lincoln munched down the cereal and dropped the spoon back into the bowl. "Happy?" He asked. For from it. Lynn didn't respond, she only had one thought in her mind. Who did this? Who was she going to hurt now?

Nobody saw his missing tooth. Either that or nobody cared? Just like in his journal entries. Maybe it was because she was the only one who had a good view on his teeth? It reminded her of Lola and Lana's teeth now with the big gap in the middle, but Lynn was fairly certain those were baby teeth. Did Lincoln grow out of it already? Was he going to get a new tooth or was this permanent? All of their little family 'moments' never resulted in anything bad being permanent before! She hoped it wasn't.

Lynn remained quiet as they finished their food, completely ignoring the food Lincoln pushed back in front of her. Luckily nobody seemed to wanna question her outburst. At least she made sure he ate something. But just one spoonful of cereal was NOT enough, so it wasn't that satisfying.

She doesn't know why she was worried so much about that. He hasn't said anything about avoiding eating, but his last entry about him seeing how he'd eat with his suit on gave her goosebumps. What did he figure out? She just wanted to be sure he actually was eating at all. Call it a gut feeling. Besides he never said she was wrong, he just asked if she was happy. That's all he ever wanted huh?

Lynn excused herself from the table as she went upstairs. Whatever happens to Lincoln, she can fix. Right? Simple solution? She hoped so. It seemed like the easiest thing, he'd stop eating and she'd force food down his stomach. He'd be upset and she'd cheer him up. He'd wear a squirrel outfit and… she'd call him a good luck charm? He'd be indecisive and she'd joke about hitting him with a bat? She made a mental note to be a better big sister once this was all said and done.

Right as she reached the top of the stairs she felt a big, fuzzy hand grab her shoulder. She immediately tensed up. While normally whenever Lincoln put his hands on your shoulder or hand it felt friendly and happy as if saying 'it's ok, I'm here.' This one felt cold. Maybe it was the suit? Maybe it was his almost dead eyes that she didn't dare turn around to see?

"Lynn, are you mad at me?" Lincoln asked.

Lynn wasn't one to admit fear often, but having your usually happy little brother ask something so seemingly harmless in a dead voice that would've matched Lucy can give anybody goosebumps. She swallowed and gave a nervous smile. "No, I just wanted to be sure you're eating. You… worry me." She said.

"I am eating I swear. Don't worry about me." He said.

Lynn resisted the urge to puke. Again a white lie. Of course he ate, but he never said he was eating well or recently. "Alright Linc." She said as she stepped into her room, leaving Lincoln to stand there. " _Dumb idiot_ " she thought. He's the reason she's worrying so much. Then she closed her eyes tight. " _No, it's MY fault.._ "

Lynn waited for Lincoln to retreat into his room, which was almost 5 minutes since he seemed to just stand in front of her door (kinda creepy), before she finally exited and entered Lori's room. Upon entering she saw Lori laying on her bed with a piece of notebook paper in her hand.

Before Lynn could ask if she read it, Lori took one glance and Lynn. "I couldn't…" she said. Lynn nodded understandingly and took the heavy paper from her. Lori turned away as Lynn forced herself to read it.

" _Things just keep getting better and better! Everything is awesome! I love this suit!_

 _Oh right sorry. So Clyde is now on the list of people who are avoiding me. Though he looks like he's going to cry each time while everyone else looks disgusted. Man I must smell. I guess showering with the suit on did nothing._

 _I didn't even bother going to lunch. I didn't want to hear what they said about me to Clyde. Not that it mattered anymore. I went to the library to read up on squirrels. I bet Lana would love this book._

 _I guess Chandler and his friends were getting bored since nobody showed up to beat me up this time. I thought I saw them coming around the corner, but then they retreated or something. Not sure what was that about. It was kinda boring without them to be honest. I just sat there wishing they'd show up sooner. I had a schedule to keep after all. I missed them as odd as it sounded. It was like this all of the school week, so I won't get into details. Well, not ALL of the week._

 _I tried my best for Lily. Whenever I tried to get near her to play or something she'd throw something at me. Did she not recognize me under the suit? Nothing happened for her, unless she genuinely enjoyed pummeling a giant squirrel with building blocks and legos. I guess I wasn't close enough to have any effects on her (can you blame me? Those blocks hurt my already black eyes). I would've kept trying but i realized she was on the verge of crying, so I let her be. I'll have to try again later._

 _Not too sure about our pets Charles, Cliff, Geo, and Walt. I took them all out for a walk (at the same time) and Charles found a bone which he carried home. Cliff dug through the trash and when I pulled him out he had a fish in his mouth. Geo at one point found some lettuce and somehow pulled it into his hamsterball. Lastly Walt of course found some good-looking bread. Despite this, they looked upset at something. Specifically they were quiet and kept looking at me with what looked like a worried look, but they're animals so I can't tell. I guess the squirrel suit scares them._

 _I forgot if it was last Wednesday or Monday when Lori took me to her college fair along with Bobby. Big shock, Lori found her dream school. Bigger shock, so did Bobby. They just so happened to be the same one too. How lucky huh? They can thank me later._

 _Bobby voiced his concerns about my suit, but I told him I liked it. He took my word for it considering most of us had questionable styles such as Lucy and Luan when she was upset. The only bad part was when I kept running into the same creepy looking guy. He looked like he would eat me if i gave him the chance. I hope he knows I'm not an actual squirrel. He actually approached me asking if I wanted some candy, but I wasn't an idiot and I knew about stranger danger so I lied and said I hated candy. I stayed near Lori the rest of the trip, which was hard since she practically ran everywhere in excitement._

 _Thursday I was called into the principal's office sometime during math. I sat down and there was Clyde looking both determined and worried. They (being the principal and some of my teachers) said I was no longer permitted to wear the suit in school grounds. I asked why and he said I was disturbing the peace or something. They asked if I understood and I said yes. Why wouldn't I? I immediately left to go home after the principal released me. I think Clyde tried following me but I don't know. I can't see behind my suit._

 _After that, I decided to hang with Leni. She did give me that suit free day back when I hated it. She asked me if I could model for her, but I said no since it would require taking off the suit. She asked what did I wanna do and I said she can keep working on her designs while I watch. She was fine with that._

 _I think she got a huge surge of ideas since she designed like 10 in almost an hour. Said it was her masterpieces and that my luck was inspiring her. I was happy for her._

 _When Friday came around I got in Vanzilla to go to school, but instead of going inside I just went to the park. A group of squirrels (the irony) seemed to dislike me and were throwing their nuts at me. Their delicious foods right at me._

 _I don't know what I was thinking. Maybe it was because I haven't been eating a lot or maybe their nuts hit me on the head, but I wanted to eat one of them. The nuts, not the squirrels. It looked delicious and i think I drooled a bit. So I shoved a nut down the eyehole of my suit and wiggles around until it was directly in my mouth._

 _Then this soccer ball came out of nowhere and smacked me right in the face. I never felt so much pain and that's saying something considering I've been in multiple explosions (thanks Lisa). The nut was directly in front of my tooth when it hit and managed to rip it clean off, sending it down my throat. I almost choked on it, but luck was on my side when I managed to swallow it. So I was bleeding and choking and almost crying, but I was alive. The suit saved me again. Not sure where the soccer ball even came from though since I looked around and it was gone._

 _I went home to clean myself up, but by the time I got there the pain was gone a little so I decided it doesn't matter anymore. The nut was still in my suit, just above my knee, but it wasn't too annoying. I was on a 5 day streak of not taking off the suit and i wasn't going to let some nut stop me._

 _Yesterday we went to the beach again. It was very hot and was probably going to be the only hot day before the cold weather began so they didn't want it to go to waste. So there I was again, standing in the hot sun. It shouldn't've bothered me anymore, but I think the soccer ball broke the air conditioner. That or Lisa simply lied again. I wonder how close I was to getting heat stroke. I didn't wanna ruin their day so I said nothing._

 _When I got home I got a video chat request from Ronnie Anne. I didn't answer since I didn't want her seeing me in the suit. I mean I love this suit, but I didn't want to risk having her react like Clyde. She called like 3 times, one time she changed her username to 'I know you're there Lincoln, answer' which made me gulp a little but I held out. After the last time she stopped for a few minutes, which made me sigh in relief. Then she sent me a text._

' _You know I can't be seen with a giant squirrel right?'_

 _Clyde must've told her. I didn't let myself think about it. If I did I'd be crying like a wuss. Must be my coping mechanism. I just let out a small laugh and put my phone away. I heard my buzzer go off which meant she sent more messages, but I shut off my phone before I could read them. It didn't matter anyways. She lived far away now so I wouldn't see her anyways. Long distance relationships never worked anyways._

 _It was tears of joy. Tears of joy. Tears of joy. Painful joy._

 _Now today I couldn't find my journal. I'll probably just paste this onto it when I find it. Knowing me I probably just forgot it somewhere. Nobody seemed to know where it was, or didn't want to answer. I felt their doors slamming through my suit somehow._

 _Lynn acted weirdly when I asked her. Willing to bet she stole it just to spite me. I would search her room, but I never know when Lucy is in there so I wouldn't risk being caught. Lynn was always good at punishing people, especially me. Maybe I'll just ask her if she took it. I wouldn't be mad, I just want it before anything happens to it._

 _Anyways not too sure what I'm going to do about school. I mean sure I can just stop showing up, but I can only avoid it for so long before they directly visit us. The only reason they haven't called is because my parents changed phone numbers and haven't updated the info to our school yet. Maybe I'll be able to transfer to a different school? I'd need to sneak inside the principal's office and tamper with the files. I think that's like super illegal though, so I'm not too sure. Maybe if I come up with a good enough plan. It'd have to be this Monday though since I think the policy is that if I go a week without an excuse slip they'd call my parents, which wouldn't work so they'd visit us._

 _My tooth still aches a bit, which is pretty funny considering I didn't have my tooth, but I'm sure it'll be gone soon enough. Just like my rashes which stopped itching and was now completely numb. Problem solved itself._

 _I realized that while the outside of the suit is clean, the inside is dirty. I am going to try showering by letting water go inside through my eye holes. If I'm careful enough I can let the water do the cleaning without drowning myself. That's kinda morbid actually. Maybe I should just break my streak. Or maybe Leni will clean it again? I miss the smell of autumn._

 _Anyways I got a lot planned for this week. I'm not sure what, but I'm pretty sure the suit will figure something out. I'll be near the school tomorrow and see what happens."_

Lynn dropped the paper into the bed. She was caught up now. How bittersweet. Lincoln was banned from the school and didn't tell anybody? What did he do today!? Did he actually go through with his plan? She knew Lincoln would not survive in jail! She shouldn't have let him go to school today.

Lynn took some breaths before looking down at the paper again. She was NOT going to let another entry be formed. Yet, despite reading all of this, she still didn't know how to make it up to him. One thing is for sure though, that suit HAS to go!

Lynn looked over to Lori who was still sprawled out with her arm covering her eyes. It was a good thing she didn't read the section. Who knows how she'd react if she found out what almost happened to him at the fair. "Lori, get some sleep. Leni will be here soon." Lynn said as she stood up. Lori didn't move, maybe she was asleep.

Lynn was now laying on her bed, doing the best she could to sleep. Once again her body failed her as at 1am she was still wide awake. Who wouldn't be? She wanted to storm into her brothers room, slap some sense into him, apologize, then burn the suit on the grill outside. Yet she couldn't because she was fairly certain he was still sleeping with the thing on and she didn't want to wake him up.

Lynn heard somebody open a door, indicating somebody had gotten up. Probably to go to the bathroom she assumed. Those thoughts were shot out the windows when the footsteps began heading towards their door. It was Lincoln. It had to be Lincoln. What was he doing? Lynn held her breath when the footsteps stopped in front of her door.

Just before she could even process what was happening, the footsteps seemed to retreat back. She heard a knocking on one of the doors, prompting her to quickly speed walk to her door and press an ear to the door frame. Soon she heard a door squeak open.

"...Lana? What do you want?" The horse voice of Lori spoke out. Lynn knew she would've taken longer to answer if she actually was asleep.

There was a small pause. "I couldn't sleep." Lana's voice admitted. Another pause before she spoke again. "I had a bad dream."

Lori gave a tired sigh. "Don't you usually go to L… Lincoln for that?" She asked. Lana spoke again. "I don't wanna sleep with him."

" _Harsh_ " Lynn thought. "Why?" Lori asked. There was the sound of what sounded like scratching before Lana sighed too. "I… had a nightmare about him."

Lynn gasped, but luckily it was masked by Loris gasp as well. "What?" She asked. Lana responded. "I had a dream that I was playing on the yard, but then I stepped on a squirrel. So I went down to apologize to it and… it was Lincoln and… he wouldn't respond a-and..."

Lynn clenched her fists. "You're afraid of hurting Lincoln?" No response, or Lana nodded and Lynn couldn't see it. She heard Lana yelp in surprise as Lori responded. "Me too little sis. C'mon, let's go to bed."

After a moment, she heard Lori's door close. Lynn slowly went back into her bed. Lincoln didn't know it, but he was (or at least would be) hurting his sisters by letting himself suffer like this. If Lana ever found out, especially with this nightmare, she'd be devastated. Maybe Lana knew deep down they were hurting him? Next to Luna, Lana was probably closest to Lincoln so she wouldn't be surprised. Maybe Lincoln had a special place in all their hearts. He sacrificed so much for them and yet…

Lynn knew what she had to do. She forced herself down and finally got some sleep. She had work to do in the morning. Luckily her brain seemed to know to wake her up an hour before everyone else, so she got some sleep but was still up and early.

Lynn quietly creaked out of bed and silently left the room. She went over the long hallway into Lincoln's room, where she quietly opened the door. She shouldn't have been surprised that he was still in his suit sound asleep, but she couldn't help but gasp anyways. She gulped down her fears and went over.

Right before she picked up her sleeping brother, she stepped on something. Luckily due to her slow walk she was sure she didn't break it, but she looked down and saw what it was. Lincoln's phone. " _Ronnie Anne_ " she thought.

Lynn booted it back up and was greeted to a password screen. She tried 'Ace Savvy' which failed, and the password hint displayed. " _Best friends?_ " She read so she tried 'Clyde'. It failed. She was considering putting his last name but she realized it said friends and not friend. It took her a few minutes to remember 'Clincoln McCloud' and it worked.

Immediately she went to his unread texts. All from Ronnie Anne.

" _Yeah that's right I know._

 _Answer my call Lame-o._

 _Seriously Lincoln I'm not joking. Clyde wouldn't shut up so just answer. Something about a squirrel suit hurting you?_

 _Don't make me go over there, I'm literally a bus ride away._

 _Answer me Lincoln!_

 _Dude!_

 _Look please answer!_

 _I'm worried and I can't rush over there yet. So just answer and we'll talk this out._

 _Lincoln!_

 _Please?_

 _Fine whatever, I'll just march over there and pry it off you myself. Expect me next Tuesday since I have an important test coming up. I was going to visit for your birthday anyways. You're lucky I'm such a good girlfriend._

 _WAIT NO. FRIEND. JUST FRIEND._

 _STUPID AUTOCORRECT._ "

Lynn let out a chuckle, which immediately she clamped her hands to her mouth. Needed to be quiet. Lynn doubted it was autocorrect that was responsible for that. Lynn was happy that Ronnie would've came and knocked some sense into everyone. " _She's better at this than I am"_ she bitterly thought.

As slowly and gently as she could she picked up the sleeping squirrel boy bridal style, which would've been funny to her under any other circumstance. Lynn then slowly made her way to the bathroom, which was hard since she had to watch his giant head. Not to mention the suit was surprisingly heavy, but she bench pressed heavier things with one hand so it wasn't a big issue.

Now in the bathroom, Lynn shut the door with her feet. She then covered Lincoln's eye holes and turned on the light. She then placed the sleeping boy down the side and gently removed his head mask. She almost puked at his condition, but didn't let herself focus too much. The hard part, which took around twenty minutes, was getting him out of the suit. It desperately needed a zipper. How did he even put on the thing?

Now with the suit off (thankfully Lincoln still wore clothing under it) Lynn wiped off the sweat on her forehead before she went down to pick up (again bridal style) Lincoln. It was easier now that he was out of the thing. Unfortunately Lynn forgot the most fundamental part of the bathroom: the mirror.

Lynn turned and she got a full view of both her and Lincoln. She was horrified. He looked dead. Her little brother genuinely looked dead. And she was carrying him like she was holding a dead corpse. She allowed herself to see every detail reflected in the mirror. He had black eyes, purple rashes, dried blood coming down his mouth, extremely messy hair, sweat drenched clothes, and white hands that looked like it had a lot of dead skin peeling off. He looked like a murder victim. She looked like she just found her dead brother because her eyes were a little red. She could only think one thing.

" _I did this to him"_

She couldn't take it anymore. It was like her emotional wall had been blown up with dynamite. She sniffles a little before she felt her eyes tear up. She was shaking and her knees gave out as she stumbled back and hit the wall. She slid down and looked down at her brother, her tears falling to his face.

" _You're so pure for this world little bro, and I hurt you_ "

She imagined how long this could've gone. He could've gone months like this and not told anybody. He could've died from heatstroke, or kidnapped, or died from infection, or… or… Lynn hiccuped which allowed her train of thought to stop. She bit her lips and nuzzled her brother's face. He didn't wake up, but probably because his face was mostly purple now. She weeped silently and held him close like if he really was dead, which might as well be true.

" _Never again_ " she finally thought after what felt like hours of crying. She stood herself up, clutching Lincoln close to her, and glanced around the room. No rash cream, but she could always just buy some. On her search though, she once again saw the empty suit she tossed aside.

" _...YOU LITTLE PIECE OF SHIT"_ she thought before she sent her hardest kick to the suit. It rolled to the side, knocking the head mask in the progress. It proceeded to roll until it stopped at her feet. The suit's now empty eye holes pointed directly back at her as if mocking her with that dumb smile.

Then she knew what needed to be done.

Lincoln had a weird dream. Not in terms of usually weirdness but in terms of how suddenly realistic it felt. He couldn't move his body, nor the suit, as he watched a dark figure approach him. It kinda scared him. It all went to darkness after that, but it felt like he was floating? Then it began raining a bit or something so much that he was filled with water. It didn't even feel like a dream honestly. Lincoln had finally forced his eyes open. Immediately he yelled in surprised.

"Relax bro, it's just me." Lynn said.

Lincoln's eyes widened. "Lynn? What the- WAIT WHY AM I NAKED!?" Lincoln yelled as he felt himself and looked around frantically.

Lynn rolled her eyes. "You're not naked, you still have your underwear on."

Lincoln looked down and let out a sigh of relief. Lynn wanted to remind him that hey both used to bath together so even if he was naked it shouldn't matter. Lincoln then began to stand up, but Lynn gently pushed him back down. Wait was he in a bathtub? "Wha- Did you fill up the tub and put me in it?" He asked. Lynn nodded. "Why? And why are you-"

Lynn held up her arm. "Listen bro. It's your birthday alright? So happy birthday. This is my first gift." She said simply as she turned to leave. She heard him stand up. "But give me my-" he began.

Lynn sighed. "Listen Lincoln. I don't know why you're doing this, well I do know now, but I just want you to know." She turned to him and gave him a strong hug, which almost made him tumble back into the water. "I love you bro. There isn't anything in the world that would make me say otherwise. I'm sorry if I made you feel like you need to do this just to make me, no, make US happy. You do so much for us and I just… take you for granted. Just know that we all love you. ALL of us. I'm sorry I don't show it so much, but it's true. The last thing we want is you hurting yourself. If we had to choose between your happiness and a dumb mascot suit, we'd choose you a million times over. Heck we'd choose your happiness over ours. Don't you EVER forget that, because if you do."

Lincoln remained silent as Lynn pulled away from the hug. She didn't care about the tears rolling down her cheeks. "Then I'll have to repeat his sappy speech again little bro" she joked with a weak smile. No response, but she expected that. It was going to take more than a few nice words before she can undo everything. She turned and went to the door, opening it and turning to him slightly. "Oh, and please clean yourself up a bit. I'll get you some rash cream." She said seriously and exited, closing the door behind her.

She leaned on the door and began to hold her breath. After a few second she heard what sounded like Lincoln sitting back down and she smiled. Thank goodness. It was a small victory to what hopefully will fix everything.

She knew it'd be a long road. She knew Lincoln, just like the rest of her family, would take this too seriously. Hence he might put up a struggle or come up with some elaborate plan to get his suit back. So from then on, after a quick sister meeting (they all deserve to know), she'd need to be close to him. Close enough to make sure he's improving while at the same time keeping her distance to make sure he couldn't-

"Lincoln?" The voice of Lori went, prompting Lynn to look up. Lynn suddenly remembered Lincoln wasn't the only one hurting. Lori's eyes were red and her hair was messy. Poor girl. "Listen, I need to talk to yo-"

"Actually, it's me." Lynn went. Loris eyes went wide. "Lynn? What are you…? Why are you wearing the squirrel suit?"

 _An eye for an eye._

* * *

 **Author's Note = Well, that's it. I decided NOT to include an epilogue. I know some of you might be disappointed about that, especially considering this ending doesn't resolve a lot and leaves a lot unanswered (such as the sister's reactions and their 'redemption'), but I know the hundreds of other NSL fanfictions already have a ton of those. If I were to write a prologue (which I did begin but I realized this problem halfway through) it'd be just more of the same and I wanted this story to be unique from other NSL stories. I'm not bashing on NSL fanfictions, I just wish there were more original stories. So once again sorry for no prologue and this somewhat cliffhanger ending, but I wanted YOU to decide how this ends. :)**

 **Anyhow, this is probably one of my proudest stories. It's the only one where I've felt confident in my ending. Will I write more Loud House stories? Ehhh, maybe. I got a ton of ideas for stories, but like I said it is more of the same. If I get an original plot (if you wanna PM me any that'd be great :D) maybe I'll write it down. I also kept forgetting to mention this but this is my first (published) Loud House fanfiction xD**

 **Asukaforever92:** Thanks buddy. I hope you enjoyed it!

 **Asylum117:** Hehe mission accomplished :) Also I can tell a lot of people either love Lynn or loathe her. I get it though since (being honest) she doesn't have too many moments with Lincoln compared to everyone else. Though I myself can't pick any of the louds to be my least favorite. They are all my favorites xD

 **Zoinks81:** True fact I was considering having Lori (in the middle of the night) just storm into Lincoln's room and try to pry off the suit from him after Lana told her about her nightmare. That would cause a scene and have all the sisters see everything at that moment. I decided against it because I felt it would be an injustice to Lynn, who was the 'main character' up to that point since she'd have no significant role in this. Maybe (if people really want it badly) I'll submit an 'alternate ending' with this instead. And thanks! I wasn't sure if I was handling his sanity well enough where it didn't feel like he just randomly went insane or something xD

 **DreadedCandiru2:** If I was good at writing Angst, I would've done an ending much like this. Both Lincoln and Lynn would go insane because Lynn can't bear to admit to everyone what is going on, while at the same time the guilt would cause her so much pain. (And as we all know, Lincoln would suffer to no end in the suit) I'm sure Clyde is more worried for Lincoln and would take him back at a moments notice (at least in the CANON story), they're such good friends.

 **Dread55:** It depends on your definition of a happy ending. Is it a happy ending because Lincoln is finally out of the suit? Is it a bad ending because the suit has a new victim? :) Oh and Lincoln is too 'imma help my sisters' happy to realize just how much pain he really is in. Sometimes I feel like he considers his sisters over his own happiness a little too much. And his teachers (and principal) have done some rather questionable things in the series (such as encouraging her class to gang up on Lincoln because of his poor electricity usage and the whole fan-comic submission thing). [Oh and also I hope you're doing alright now. I know depression is one hard son of a b*tch to fight. Stay strong! :D]

 **DarthSidious04:** You know maybe at this point Lincoln enjoys torturing himself too. xD (And yeah I mentioned this before but his sisters both get carried away AND are naive most of the time, but it's a kids show so that's to be expected.)

 **Shadowmaster91:** I've been longing for a story of Loud House where Lincoln is driven to sadness because of his sisters (unintentionally, not because they're uncharacteristically evil) and it ISN'T No Such Luck. I guess that's why I read so many NSL stories. xD If I was good at writing Angst (is this story angst? I'm not sure) and had the heart to do it, then I'd be writing more stories like this xD

 **King Genocide:** (Can you guess where I got the 'creepy guy' idea from in this chapter? xD) I hope you enjoyed this "ending." Part of me wishes it was longer, but anything more would become a typical NSL story for me, so I ended it here. Thanks again for the idea btw :D

 **StolenMemes77:** As the sun begins to set, you see what remains of the ashes begin to float up in the air as the wind picks up. The ashes seem to dance around in the wind for a moment before finally flying off. You take another sip of you delicious coffee, a happy smile graces your face, and you stand up. Knowing your job is done and this nightmare can finally put to rest, you head inside. All of a sudden you are whacked in the head with a broom by an angry Lori. "WHO ARE YOU AND WHY ARE YOU IN OUR HOUSE!?" (Thanks for that detailed ending xD)

 **Guest:** Oh really? I've seen most of the Loud House episodes of season two, but I swear the air-times are always when I'm not home! Also yeah I remember the episode where Lucy uses a spell-book to silence her siblings and they appear to be eating in one table. I feel like they just forgot about the tables thing also.

 **Lincoln Ace Loud:** *Ding Ding Ding* Disqualified! Hit below the belt! Also what would Lincoln's ring-name be if he had the suit on? I felt my 'wrestler name' for him was dumb xD

 **Azturner:** Unintentionally, but true. Also they might've ruined his school reputation, but considering all the shenanigans he was involved with I wouldn't be surprised if everyone sorta forgot sometime later xD

 **So now comes the end. I hope you all enjoyed the story! I don't think I'll write anymore NSL stories (since they've been done to death) so I'll stick to just reading them. If you guys really want this bonus-chapter (see Zoinks81's section above) then let me know in the reviews and MAYBE I'll write it sometime. It'd be a while though.**

 **Anyways thank you so much for reading and reviewing this! If you want to expand on this concept (a more angst take perhaps) then I highly encourage it! Thanks again to King Genocide for the idea! I hope you all have a wonderful holiday and have a great winter break!**


	5. The Future

**A/N: Surprise! Bonus chapter five! I bet you thought I was done with this story. Well, so did I. Anyways, hope you enjoy!**

The building was much more bigger than she imagined. The outside made it seem small like it only housed around five people, but once inside it was as if it was endless. Lynn Loud knew she'd get lost inside if her guide decided to leave. With the white exterior that reminded her of a church and the insides being nothing but branching hallways of white walls and white doors, it amazed her that anybody could find their way through. There wasn't even a secretary in the front. Even her guide had only a white robe on, face hidden from her.

It didn't help that instead of labels like 1A or 3C, the labels were just the names of the occupants. They weren't even in alphabetical order! How did anyone find their way around here? Maybe it was intentional. Didn't matter since she was looking for one particular name. Luckily it seems her guide had finally found the room. He turned to her and took a step back.

"Lincoln Loud's chamber" said the familiar voice as it turned and left. Lynn took a glance at the white door with no windows nor even a doorknob. She took a deep breath as she pushed her way inside.

The room was dark. Very dark. She couldn't even see her hands let alone the door she just walked through. Yet she knew she was in the correct place. She walked forward, following the sounds of what seemed like sobbing and laughing. As she walked forward she heard her shoes splash into something, yet she didn't dare look down.

Her head bumped something. A single dangling cord now swung in front of her. Her hands seemed to have a mind of their own as it reached up and tugged the cord down. The room brightened up, but somehow didn't blind her. She was greeted with big eyes staring right at her. She didn't flinch.

She took a step back. "Hey Lincoln" She greeted. Lincoln didn't respond as he turned away and began looking around the room. Lynn momentarily didn't know what he was doing, until she spotted the acorn at her feet. She picked it up and Lincoln sniffed in the air before turning to her. She held it out and he snatched it up almost immediately. Just as she expected, he shoved it into the eyehole of the squirrel suit he was still wearing and shook his head like a rabid dog. Lynn was unfazed.

After the sound of a crunch and chewing, she took a seat on the floor. After a few moments Lincoln took a seat in front of her. "So I got married today" she said, presenting her hands to display a wedding ring she didn't remember putting on. Lincoln's eyes drifted to the ring then back to her. She chuckled. "Yeah, I would've told you sooner but visiting hours here suck" she said.

Lincoln closed his eyes and his head drifted down. "I'm sure the others would visit too…" she said. Lincoln opened his eyes and examined her again. "I wanted you to be the best man at the wedding… but it's ok! Don't worry about it."

Lincoln's eyes drifted off to the side as if he began thinking of something. "You could come see everyone again if you…" She began reaching for his headmask. Lincoln responded by harshly slapping away her hand, to which she felt no pain at all for. "Right. My bad." She went. Lincoln stood up and took a few steps back.

Lynn stood up. "Lily really wants to meet you by the way." She said. Lincoln continued staring. "Ok no, she doesn't wanna see you… BUT everyone else does! Lori, Luna, EVERYONE." She said. He continued to stare. "I'd like to see you again too" she whispered. Stare.

The room seemed to darken as he reached for his head mask. Lynn leaned forward in anticipation as he gripped the sides of the squirrel head. However, he tugged it upwards revealing it wouldn't budge. Her eyes widened when she realized the line between the squirrel head mask and the rest of the suit had somehow disappeared. It was replaced with a neck. Somehow it morphed into one, which meant…

Lincoln spoke in a cold dead tone. "It's too late for me." Lynn responded by screaming.

Lynn violently shot up as she continued her scream of fear. In her shock she didn't hear the second shout nearby. He heart pounded to her chest as she clutched where her heart should be. Though at this point she wouldn't be surprised if she discovered her heart had long ago failed from all the nightmares. She took a few deep breaths to calm down.

"Are you ok?"

The surprise made Lynn yelp and turn. The last person she wanted to see stood there. "Lincoln? What are you doing here?" She asked. Lincoln fumbled with his shirt for a bit. "I heard you yell and I thought-"

Lynn growled as she stood up. "Cut the crud Lincoln, you were in here already before I yelled." She pointed out. Lincoln sweated a bit as Lynn neared him. However, remembering all the pain she already inflicted on him, she took a deep breath and opened the door to her room. She pointed towards the hallway and Lincoln immediately ran out the room. She waited until she heard his door slam shut before letting out her breath in relief.

"Did Lincoln try to…" Lucy's voice emerged. Lynn tiredly looked up and saw Lucy in her coffin bed sitting up. Lynn nodded and they both sighed, or in Lucy's case said 'sigh.' Lynn went over to her bed. "Go to sleep Sis', I'll keep watch for him." Lynn said as she laid back on her bed.

Lucy gave a worried look, which Lynn knew how to see behind her bangs after being her roommate for so long, before nodding and closing her coffin bed. Though Lynn doubted her roommate would actually sleep anytime soon.

Realizing she was stuck on night guard duty again, she stood up with the intent of getting a midnight snack. She opened her door and headed out into the hallway, closing the door behind her. She took one glance at Lincoln's room, noting the lights were off, as she turned away.

She paused when she saw Lisa's room. Those lights were on, which meant she was up again. _"I might be stuck on night guard duty, but YOU'RE getting some sleep today Lisa_ " Lynn thought to herself as she went over and lightly knocked on the door.

She heard some rustling. "Hold on a moment" the voice of Lisa said, lisp as heavy as ever. After a few seconds, Lisa opened the door. "Lynn? To what do I owe this *yawn* intrusion too?" She asked, rubbing her eyes.

Lynn rolled her own eyes as she bent down and gently picked up the little scientist. "Hey! I request you *yawn* unhand me!" Lisa harshly whispered. Lynn ignored her as she went over to Lisa's bed and placed her on it.

Lisa frowned at Lynn as Lynn took off Lisa's glasses. "I know what you're doing Lynn, but I don't *yawn* have time for this!" Lisa complained. Lynn pulled up her blanket and tucked her in. "I have… important research… to…"

Lynn smiled as Lisa drifted into sleep. Looks like she wasn't so bad at being a good sister. Then again, she wanted to be a better sister to Lincoln first. Lynn placed Lisa's glasses on a nearby table, then paused when she saw Lisa's documentations on said table.

Lynn eyed the sleeping Lisa and then to the papers. She decided to indulge her curiosity as she picked up the papers. In looked like there were two separate files. One was labeled 'Lincoln,' which didn't surprise Lynn at all, while the other was labeled 'Lynn.' Part of her reminded her that snooping around is what got her so… involved in this situation. Another part of her also said it was also said snooping that probably saved her brother from himself. Well, from everything if she was being honest.

Deciding to skim over, she picked up the ones labeled Lincoln. Quickly reading over it, it was basically everything she told Lisa summed up. Of course Lynn didn't tell Lisa everything, but she told her enough. Based on what she read, Lisa concluded that Lincoln had his baby teeth fall out early due to how poorly he was managing his teeth while in the suit. Poor naive Lisa. It was good that she didn't study dentistry yet. Probably better she thought that instead of telling her his teeth was knocked out. She also noted that Lincoln had been skipping school again, but Lynn already knew that.

One section caught her attention however. " _I have also noticed that, if what little Lori and Lynn told me is true, that Lincoln had begun worshipping the squirrel suit. Whenever he is spoken to about the suit, he becomes cold and distant in tone. I had also realized that Lincoln began talking in an almost monotone voice while wearing it, yet after Lynn took it off him, his voice had since been full of doubt and worry except in the condition mentioned above. Granted he sound closer to normal Lincoln now, but now he always sounds on edge. Perhaps he associates the squirrel suit as his comfort zone now?_ " Lynn read. She sighed as she mentally added another note to her 'how I hurt my brother' section.

Lynn went over to the last page of the notes to see that Lisa had come up with a conclusion section. " _In short, I have decided to read up on child psychology and possibly child therapy. Going to consoling will hurt my parental unit's already strained money budget, so it must be me to do it. Further research into the topic is required, but I have high hopes for this. I can still save our brother from insanity._ " Lynn read. She wished she had Lisa's spirit.

Lynn took a glance at her own stack of papers. After a moment's hesitation, she placed her previous papers back down and picked up the new ones. She began skimming.

"— _next to Lori, my oldest sibling unit, she was the only one who read the entire journal before it was destroyed. Lori had not complete-"_

" _-shortly after reading the journal, she began subjecting herself to the same treatment as Lincoln by-_ "

" _-recurring nightmares of possible futures. In one instance, during one particular nasty nightmare, she had soiled-_ "

" _-has quit all of her sports teams-_ "

" _-possible psychological damage-_ "

" _-refuses to discuss contents of journal. Lori has also been silent about what was in the journal despite our third oldest sibling unit Luna's constant demand-_ "

" _-highly suspect Lynn to have been the one to destroy the journal-_ "

" _-has been more active in taking up the 'protective sister' role she assigned herself-_ "

" _-found evidence that she has been following Lincoln to school-_ "

" _-paid a visit to somebody named Chandler and-_ "

Lynn decided she didn't want to read any further, but by then she had already skimmed to the conclusion section. With a light shrug, she decided to give it a full read. " _In the end, I still couldn't figure out why Lynn waited those last few days before informing us. Many of us, myself included, felt a little betrayed when she refused to tell us everything and admitted to hiding it for around three days. It probably would've been better if she told us herself instead of Lori in our latest Sibling Meeting. Lynn is still an enigma to me._ "

" _Despite this, I am grateful. Whatever she read in that journal not only revealed the pain that was inflicted on Lincoln, but possibly had driven her mad with guilt. (Lori has been oddly quiet ever since her part in the readings.) Those two obviously don't want us to suffer even more guilt with the knowledge, so I concluded that they're hiding it from us to protect us. I can argue we don't deserve this protection, but I will forever be grateful for having them as sisters. I'm sure they will figure this out. I may be a genius but they always seem to know what is best._ "

Lynn made sure to put everything back how it was before she exited the room. However, as soon as she closed the door, another door creaked open. The door to her room.

"...Lincoln?" Lynn whispered. Her only brother, not being able to see her in the darkness of the hallways, tensed up and faced her direction. She felt her fist tighten when she realized what he was doing. "Why were you in my room?" She asked, her voice drenched in venom.

Lincoln began stuttering for a response as Lynn flipped on the hallway lights. "I- I was uhh… going to… APOLOGIZE! Yeah! I was going to apologize for sneaking into your room." Lincoln said. Lynn didn't buy it. "But… you weren't there and…"

Lynn began grinding her teeth. "Were you seriously doing what I think you were doing…?" She growled. Lincoln began frantically looking for an escape as his eyes darted around the hallway. Lynn quickly stepped in the path to his room, blocking off his only escape route.

However he tried to sidestep her, but Lynn grabbed him just before he was out of reach and flung him in front of her. "I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU!" She yelled. Lincoln flinched as he held a finger to his mouth in a shushing motion. "Don't you shush me! This is the fourth time this week and it isn't even Sunday yet!" She yelled.

Lynn heard doors opening around her, but she didn't care. "Why do you want the suit so badly Lincoln!? It does nothing but hurt you! Just let it go! Move on! Forget the whole thing about luck and what not! We all wanna move on, but you're the only holdout! So why!? Why do you keep trying to steal it back!? Why do you care!?" She shook him, suddenly not caring if she hurt him or not.

Lincoln's eyes held genuine disbelief. "Why do I care!?" He yelled as he harshly pushed her away. "Because it's MY suit! It's MY responsibility and MY luck! Don't you get it Lynn!? The suit might hurt me, but it gives everyone else good luck! Ever since I stopped wearing it everyone has been upset and sad because of it! Just let me wear it and everything will go back to normal!" With that he grabbed a hold of Lynn's head, but she responded by slapping away his arms.

Lincoln threw himself like a mad animal at Lynn, who did her best to hold her head as Lincoln struggled to grab a hold. The two of them began rolling around in an almost comedic style as they continuously bumped the walls, knocking down a vase and family picture that hung on the wall. Just as Lincoln had a good grip, Lynn pushed her legs to his stomach and kicked, sending him flying towards the wall.

Lincoln clutched his stomach in pain as Lynn slowly got to her feet. "What a load of bull…" she mumbled. Lincoln, still holding his stomach, stood up. "Give me back my suit Lynn! I want to make this right!" He yelled as he limped towards her.

Lynn snorted, making Lincoln stop right in front of her. "You honestly believe letting you wear it will make everything 'right' again?" she asked. Lincoln opened his mouth to respond but Lynn cut him off. "Things will NEVER be right again Lincoln! Nothing will ever be OK for us ever again! You wanna know why!? It's because of this STUPID SQUIRREL SUIT!" She yelled as she grabbed the head of the squirrel suit and ripped it off her head.

She heard some gasps around her, including from Lincoln who's eyes went wide. "What do you see Lincoln!? Huh!? WHAT DO YOU SEE!?" She demanded. Lincoln didn't respond. "You know what I see!? I see my little brother suffering because his naive mind really believes we enjoy the luck more than we love him! How STUPID can you be Lincoln!?"

"This isn't some cartoon Lincoln! Things won't magically get better! There's no 'next episode' were everything is back to normal and we all suddenly forget what happens! You're not stupid! You know this! So why do you keep insisting on wearing this damn suit!? I'm wearing it and trust me, it sucks! I wear it because I deserve it and because I… I don't know what you'd do if I destroyed it…"

Lynn stared down. "That's what scares me. I don't know anymore Lincoln. I used to know you, we all did, but after what I did… I can't understand this. I don't understand you anymore. No matter how hard I try, or how much Lisa researches, or how much Lori or Luna talks to you, we just don't understand you. And it's eating me alive because it's my fault…" Lincoln began approaching her, to which she jumped back.

Lincoln looked visibly hurt. "I just wanted to… make you happy." He said. Lynn laughed in an almost crazy way. "You think THIS makes me happy!? I'm wearing a squirrel suit, my family is in shambles, and my only brother suffered for four weeks! Oh but yeah, you think I'm SOOO happy! I got a pain boner from this huh!? That's stupid Lincoln! You're NOT stupid are you!? Because guess what, I'm NOT happy! This will NEVER make me happy!"

Lincoln flinched at the harsh words, but Lynn continued. "When I read, no, when I saw what we did to you. I just…" some tears flowed down her cheeks. "I just couldn't handle it. It was like somebody stabbed my heart over and over again. I might hurt you, and make fun of you, but it was always small things. It was never serious and you knew it was all in good fun. But Lincoln, you're STILL missing your tooth and your rashes STILL haven't cleared up!"

Lynn took a glance around the hallway, well aware of the audience she had gathered up. In fact the only ones missing was Lisa, (who had soundproofed her room,) Lily, and their pets. "And this all began because I couldn't accept my loss, and my sisters couldn't have a mind of their own. You're no angel Lincoln, so I don't know why you're trying to be one! You think they'll worship the ground you walk on because of what you did? No! Everyone here thinks you're crazy! Everyone thinks I'M crazy! And you wanna know what the really crazy thing is?" She asked in a tone that sounded like she was gonna laugh.

"THIS SQUIRREL SUIT DOESN'T FUCKING WORK!" she yelled as she threw the mask at the wall. Due to her excellent pitching skills, she left a noticeable dent on the wall. It rolled across the hallway to Lincoln's feet. "You're supposed to be happy! I thought you'd be happy to be able to go to school again, that Clyde is trying to talk to you again, that Ronnie Anne visits you everyday now! So what the heck!? Why are you still so, so…. BROKEN!?"

Lincoln quietly picked up the headmask, looking at it for a moment before hearing more ruffling. He looked back up to see Lynn had kicked off the rest of the suit off her. "So you know what!? I don't care! It doesn't work! It never did! I don't know why everything that happened happened, but I don't care! I can't feel my fucking knees anymore! I smell horrible! I'm drenched in sweat! I'm pretty sure my rashes are worse than yours now! And to top it all off, it didn't give anybody any good luck! So…! So…" She quietly looked down, tears staining the floor.

"I just don't know what to do…"

Lynn stared down, not knowing what her brother, no, what this shell of a brother she called Lincoln would do. She got her response when she heard a door slam shut, making her look up. Lincoln was gone, the suit was gone, and all hope for her was gone. She stared behind her in disbelief that Lincoln choose to wear it despite what she said. He chose his suit over her.

"Oh Lynn, I'm so sorry…"

Lynn didn't know who said that. She didn't care. "FINE! WEAR IT! I HOPE YOU LIVE A LONG AND HAPPY LIFE!" She yelled as she ran past whoever was behind her who ended up being Lori, past her parents who were watching from the stairs, then out the front door.

It took them all a second to register what happened. "I'm going after her." Their father said as he ran down the stairs. "I'm going too!" Lori yelled as she ran after her father. Neither of them cared they were heading out in their pajamas, but they did have to stop for shoes. The house got quiet after the sound the door slamming shut was heard. Everyone looked at each other, sans Rita who went back downstairs with a worried look, before Luna stepped forward towards the family picture that was knocked down.

She picked it up and held it in front of her. It was the picture they gave their parents. Luna remembers that day well, she remembers that time well. Sure Lincoln was (unintentionally) being stubborn, but Luna felt like he brought the family together that day. It was a bad picture, but it was perfect. It was the Loud House.

Now it had a crack running along the middle. It was directly in top of Lincoln. His distressed look now looked much worse like if he was panicking over their broken family.

Luna heard a low whine. She looked down and saw Charles gently pawing at Luna. He must've woken up from all the noise. Come to think of it, the others must still be sleeping in Charles' dog house. Luna gave the dog a light pet as she turned around with a deadly look.

"Sister meeting. NOW." She said. Nobody dared disobey, and nobody brought up the fact that Lisa was still sleeping in her bed with Lily.

Meanwhile, Lincoln stood in his room with his hands on the object he had been craving for. He eyed it like it was chocolate and smiled. He took another glance at the rest of the suit, which was laying neatly on his bed. "Lynn will forgive me, when she gets a football scholarship!" He announced to nobody as he held the mask up to his head.

"And if she doesn't, I don't care."

He paused. Where did that come from? No wait, he's right. She'll be happy with all the luck he'll bring her. In fact, first thing he's gonna do is put on the suit and go looking for her.

" _This will NEVER make me happy!"_

Lincoln flinched and nearly dropped the mask, but kept his grip firm. "She just… doesn't know what she's talking about. She was very happy before she knew!" He said.

" _C'mon Lincoln! I told you I don't care about the suit. I'd much rather hang out with my good friend Lincoln than 'squirrel boy' anytime."_

Lincoln shook his head. Clyde never got any of the good luck, so he doesn't know how good it works. "Yeah, he has no clue. Maybe the suit will work for him this time!" He said with a hopeful smile as he began to bring it down to his head.

" _In all seriousness Lame-o, if I EVER see you with the squirrel suit, I'll never talk to you again._ "

Lincoln's smile plummeted and he raised the mask back up. "Oh right…" he went. Was Ronnie Anne serious? Well, she'd forgive him too. Maybe the suit will work for her too? "For their happiness" he said, again bringing it down.

" _I don't know what happened to you little bro, but… I'm sorry. I failed you as your sister and as your guardian. I'll never let you hurt like that again. I swear on my life._ "

Lincoln held the mask in front of him, looking at it like if he wasn't so sure. On her life? What did she mean? What would she do?

" _I know I'm not so 'smart' like Lisa or Lori or… anybody else here, but I totes never thought I'd mess up this bad… I'm just so DUMB Lincy. I'm sorry for being so... stupid..._ "

No, he never meant to make Luna feel like she failed nor Leni feel like she's dumb. It was all him for pointlessly writing out his thoughts in a journal! "I'll never make that mistake again." He promised, preparing to hold it up again.

" _I never would have accepted that money if I knew Lincoln! I'm sorry! I'll use it to… buy you a new bed! No, I'll get you the new Nindento Swap! I'll… I'll.. Just… please let Lynn destroy the squirrel suit._ "

Lincoln shook his head. "I can't let her destroy it. It's the only way to fix everything." he said. Lynn was wrong, Lori was wrong, EVERYONE was wrong. Didn't they realize? Everything was perfect until he stopped wearing it. It wasn't a coincidence.

" _It was merely coincidental brother unit. Think of it like this. By definition, luck is all up to chance. If the suit worked in the manner you said it does, is it really chance? Luck doesn't exist, and I was a fool to give you back the squirrel suit. I only hope you'll forgive me someday._ "

He growled in anger. "No! It works! I've seen it work! They just…" he started.

" _I literally don't care how long it takes. I'll make this right. I've been a horrible big sister to all of you. Who lets their brother wear a mascot suit at the beach!? You could've gotten heatstroke and... oh god… I'm… I'm a monster..."_

Lincoln's eyes widened. He didn't remember her saying that last part. Then again he has been doing his best to ignore them when they're talking like this. Lori didn't really believe that right?

" _I'll never write another poem again. I'll… wear all pink and join the cheerleaders. I'll do whatever you want, just promise me that you'll never wear it again. Please?"_

Lincoln felt a tinge of guilt when he remembered how he ignored Lucy. They'd come to their senses… he just...

" _Stop being a brat! That's my job! I'm the brat! I know it! Everyone here knows it! I'm just a spoiled princess who doesn't deserve a brother like you! So stop being bratty and tell me you won't wear it ever again! Lincoln! ANSWER ME!"_

"You're not a brat… I never… thought that…" he pleaded with nobody, backing to his bed and falling onto it. Still holding the head mask on his hand, he felt something fall on the floor. He sat up and found the source of the noise.

" _Lincoln…?"_

He bent down and picked up the badly made metal hat, letting the mask slide to the floor.

" _I… Made this for you. I thought that maybe you… needed something on your head to help you forget about- You know…"_

Lincoln remembered thanking Lana in a monotone voice, to which she winced at.

" _It… says 'world's best brother' on it… I uh… hope you like it."_

He remembered her running off as if she was scared. He remembered feeling nothing when he saw her eyes in tears briefly. That wasn't normal? Why didn't he feel anything. He didn't feel anything when they cried for him. Wait, they CRIED, and he didn't do anything! He looked at the mask, which was still smiling creepily. "Maybe they're… right! It's cursed or something! Oh no! Lynn was right! I gotta-"

 _You gotta WHAT?_

Lincoln flinched.

 _You know darn well what you need to do Lincoln._

Lincoln looked down at the mask, fear present in his eyes. Was it, talking?

 _You know how our family runs Lincoln. Lynn was lying. We mess up, we forgive, we forget. Then after a week or so, we repeat. That's how it's always been. That's how it'll always BE Lincoln._

Lincoln picked up the mask and held it in his remaining hand. Why did it sound like...

 _Don't you realize it Lincoln? There's a reason they don't want you wearing the suit anymore. News flash, it isn't because you got hurt. You're ALWAYS getting hurt. What's so different this time?_

Lincoln looked at the metal hat, then back at the mask.

 _You know exactly how Lynn is. Why is she suddenly super caring about your physical health? Isn't she the one who causes you the most physical pain? I'll tell you why. This is just another one of her GAMES. She doesn't like the idea that you're beating her at something. Remember the whole board games fiasco? Remember how she didn't learn about 'not being a sore loser' from that nor this? She didn't learn then and she won't learn now. She's trying to beat you AGAIN Lincoln. You're smarter than this. Don't let Lynn take away the only good thing you have left._

Lincoln looked up at the door.

 _Your family isn't so 'Loud' anymore. You stop wearing the suit and BAM all your bad luck comes back. You were never faking it Lincoln, you really are bad luck. Just think back at all the horrible things that happened to you. It's like your whole life is just made so everyone else could learn from your mistakes. I don't know why, but the universe has it out to get you. But you could finally change that. YOU can be the one on top._

He smiled. He liked that idea. But then he frowned. "But I did this for my sisters… if they don't like it…"

 _You sacrificed so much for your sisters. How often do you spend your days helping one of them with their daily problems? How often do THEY help YOU? Oh right, only AFTER they feel bad. Pity. I think it's high time that YOU are selfish for once Lincoln. Do what YOU wanna do. Forget your sisters._

"...forget my sisters?"

 _Forget them, your parents, your pets, your wanna be girlfriend, EVERYONE. You already lost Clyde because you wanted to make them happy. Not even the bullies wanna pick on you anymore. Remember when Chandler came to apologize? Remember the black eye and bruised elbow he had? The suit was helping you! You're worthless without it. You wanna be Lincoln Loud, the only boy in a family of future talents. Literally that's your trait? 'The Boy?' Or do you wanna be Lincoln Loud, the luckiest person alive? The one everyone wants to be around?_

"...I…"

 _It all comes down to this Lincoln. It's always been like this. You sacrifice something for the sake of making your family happy. That's exactly what's happening right now. You enjoy something and it's suddenly a problem. So I can only ask you one thing._

 **Your happiness, or theirs?**

Lincoln looked at the mask. It made him feel secure. It might hurt him, but he was used to it. He's ALWAYS been used to it. It makes, or at least used to make, his sisters happy. It might be weird, but it'd be his. Lincoln would finally stand out among his family like he always wanted. It wasn't a trophy nor a special talent, but it was something.

Then Lincoln looked at the hat. 'Best brother in the world' eh? It marked his standing in the Loud House. The brother. Oh Luna was a musical genius and Lisa was a genius in general, but Lincoln was just the brother. How far would that take him? When his sisters eventually moved out, where would he be? Was it really worth it?

...but it made his sisters happy. He's never seen them all so upset. He knew it wasn't fake. They cared for him, but they've shown plenty of times to not really know what's best for him. He remembers when he got a black eye from Ronnie Anne, and when he juggled four dates because of them. But the former turned out to work out well, so they weren't always wrong. Right?

Besides, if Lynn really did consider this a game then… why did she quit? She gave him the suit back, hence she forfeit right? She'd NEVER do that. EVER. So the voice, which sounded a lot like himself, was wrong on that end right? And… he made her cry? Did HE really make one of his sisters CRY? Worse yet he made ALL of them cry!

It was a gamble. If he chose to trust his sisters it'd be a gamble. He hated to think that, but it was true. There was so many situations where he felt like if his sisters had just did one thing different then everything would be alright. Yet at the same time it felt like if they weren't there then everything would've turned out so much worse.

Then another thought came to his mind. His eyes drifted to the window. The window he secretly always kept unlocked. The window that would be so easy to just climb out of. Lincoln took one last glance at the mask before smiling. A crazed smile? A calm smile? "Man with a plan." He said.

Catching Lynn was no easy feat. Despite her lack of physical training as of late both Lori and their father found it almost impossible for them to keep up. It didn't help that their father had at some point fallen behind to catch his breath, muttering something about 'using Vanzilla' next time.

Either Lynn ran out of stamina, which Lori seriously doubted, or she simply gave up as she slowed her run down to a complete halt. They had almost ended up back at the Royalwoods Elementary school by the time Lori caught up to her. Lynn had her hands formed into fists and her knuckles were going completely white because of how hard she was pressing them. She was also breathing hard, shaking slightly, and being quiet. So Lori did the only thing she knew how to do when one of her sisters (or brother) needed comforting.

Lori knelt down, brought Lynn into a hug, and carried her back up into her arms. Lynn couldn't hold it anymore and she let out a waterfall of tears onto Lori's shoulder, completely soaking it. Lori could only hold her tighter, silently thanking her golfing skills for keeping her arms in shape if even a little.

Lynn knew she looked ridiculous. She was being carried while she cried, Lori was even patting her back like if she was trying to make her burp, but honestly she didn't care. She needed this. If even for a second it made her feel secure, like it did all those years ago when Lori did this whenever she lost a game, then she'll gladly look like a toddler. She just wanted to feel like everything would be ok again. Just for this moment.

The walk back was silent. Lori eventually had to put her down, especially when they heard their father off in the distance. She saved Lynn the humiliation and put her back down just as he arrived. Lori signaled her father to be silent, and he respected it despite his obvious need to ask questions. Either that or he had no idea what to say, which wouldn't surprise her at all.

Once home, they found their mother sitting on the sofa. Her first instinct was to run to her child and hug her with all her strength, earning a yelp from Lynn. She saw where she got her natural strength from (besides training of course). Then the massive scolding for scaring them like that came, but Lynn was already zoned out. All those sleepless nights were finally getting to her.

Avoiding having Lori lift her up the stairs, which she would've enjoyed, she hugged her mom and dad one last time before beginning to ascend the stairs. Now being free of the squirrel suit, she decided to take a much needed shower and maybe take some sleeping pills since she doubted she'd be getting sleep despite how tired she is.

However once upstairs, she was greeted to an unexpected yet slightly welcoming sight. All of her sisters were standing right outside Lincoln's room, each of them holding a different item.

Leni has what looked like a sweater that's been tied together, like those shirts insane people wear. Luna has a book, to which Lynn could see was Lincoln's baby picture album. Luan has a wrapped present, Lynn assumed was the one Lincoln refused to open on his birthday. Lucy has a black book, which meant it was either her poem book or the spell book she found. Lola has handcuffs, which Lynn knew was from her police officer costume. Finally Lana has rope, probably from all the alligator wrestling competitions she boasts about going to.

Lynn couldn't help but smile at this. It almost felt like their usual Loud House antics. Almost. Luna held her finger up to her mouth to shush her and tried motioning her over, the others copied her actions. Lynn was curious to see what they were gonna do, but Lynn REALLY didn't wanna deal with Lincoln right now. She shook her head and silently walked into her room, completely forgetting her shower. They all shared a look of understanding before Luna held her hand out. She held three fingers up. Then two. Then one as they all barged in.

Lynn was already laying on her bed when she heard them slam the door open. She cracked another smile when she heard a scuffle, not unlike when they all get into a fight. She could practically see the dust cloud they would form. However, her smile was short lived. " _Well Lynn Loud, you officially failed. You failed yourself, your brother, and your whole family._ " She thought to herself. Screw the bath, she wouldn't risk going back out just yet. Just as she closed her eyes in a vain attempt to get some sleep, she smelled something.

Smoke.

She immediately sat up just in time for Luna to barge into her room. "Lynn! Get up! Lincoln is gone!" Luna yelled as she ran out the room. Lynn wasted no time in following her and the rest of her sisters downstairs. Lori and their parents were all sitting on the couch when they all ran up to them.

"Girls what's wrong?" Their father asked. They all yelled out their response, except for Lynn, so of course neither of them understood. "Everyone calm down!" Lori yelled, their panicking voices immediately went mute. "Now what's going on?" She asked.

Immediately afterwards, Lisa, carrying Lily who was still sleeping, came running down the stairs. "Parental units! My radars has detected high levels of smoke near the house!" She yelled. They all went pale. Smoke meant…

"Quick! Everyone evacuate!" Their father ordered. "Actually none of the smoke is-" Lisa started but was silenced when they all stormed out the house, ending up with her being dragged along. Once outside, their father looked up and did see a black trail of smoke.

He looked back at his family. "Alright headcount. One two… five… eight… plus me is… twelve! Wait twelve!? Who's missing!?" Their father asked. They all gasped. "It's Lincoln! He wasn't in his room!" Lola said.

Their father took a glance at the house. "Is he inside!?" He asked. When nobody answered, he let out an irritated growl. "I'm going inside to look for him." He said.

"Parental unit, I was going to say that-" Lisa started. She was once again cut off when their father ran inside the house. "Lincoln!" Lynn yelled as she followed her father. Lisa sighed.

Once inside, their father began heading upstairs. "You check the kitchen, I'll go upstairs!" He said. Lynn nodded as she ran into the kitchen. There she saw a lot of smoke forming. So much smoke that the fire alarm was going off, making her want to cover her ears from the irritating sound.

Lynn crouched down below the smoke as she scanned the area. "Lincoln!" She called out. When she got no answer, she muttered a curse as she opened the back door and stepped out. She let her lungs clear as she coughed for a few seconds. Then she glanced up.

"Hi Lynn."

Lynn's eyes widened. There was her brother standing directly in front of her, a very neutral face on him. "Lincoln!" She exclaimed as she brought him into a bone crushing hug. He let out a squeak and any other day she would've laughed. "C'mon we gotta get outa here! There's a fire!" Lynn yelled as she let him go and took a hold of his hand.

"Fire?" Lincoln asked. Lynn then gasped. "Wait! Dad is still inside!" She went as she tried dragging Lincoln, she was met with resistance. "Lynn what are you talking about? What fire?" Lincoln asked.

Lynn tried tugging harder, but he was putting up a good fight. "Lisa's science thingy found smoke, which means there's a fire inside!" Lynn tried. She put both her hands on Lincoln and tried using all her strength to pull him.

"Lynn stop! You're bleeding!" Lincoln yelled. Lynn halted her attempts and looked at herself. He was right, she was bleeding. One of the rashes, or at this point would be described better as a bruise, seemed to have finally caved from all the pressure and was now lightly bleeding. Not too much, but it could still get infected. That's assuming it wasn't already.

Lynn now realized it wasn't that Lincoln was putting up a fight, but rather she was really tired. Having gotten in an adrenaline rushed fight with Lincoln, then going out for a run, all combined with slacking off on her training while barely getting any sleep had finally taken its toll on her. She didn't realize how much she really needed that shower as she now realized she was even more drenched in sweat.

She didn't care as she tried pulling again. "Doesn't matter, we gotta-"

"Lynn, there's no fire!" Lincoln said. Lynn stopped again and looked at her brother in confusion. "It isn't a fire, it's the grill." He said. Lynn looked behind her brother and saw that what he said was true. A large portion of smoke was coming from the grill, the lid closed and smoke pouring out from only hole on in. She took another glance and saw that, due to the wind, smoke was sleeping in through the kitchen window and Lincoln's open window.

Lynn's eyes went to her brother. "Sorry, I didn't mean to freak anyone out. I was just…" he started. Lynn pushed herself away from Lincoln and went to the grill, popping the lid open. Whatever was inside was completely burnt and destroyed. There was a huge pack of dust and what looked like charcoal inside, leaving only smoke and the remnants of whatever was inside.

Lynn looked at her brother again and realized something. He took the squirrel suit, which meant he SHOULD have put it on by now. She had allowed him to take it after all the times he's tried to steal it back, so why wasn't he wearing it? Then it dawned on her. A small piece of hope formed inside her heart as she muttered her question. "Did you… burn the squirrel suit?"

Lincoln looked away, lightly scratching his arms. "I… I've been thinking that… maybe you are right." Lincoln began. He continued on talking, but Lynn's mind was going a million miles an hour. The last phrase kept echoing through her brain. " _I was right? I did the right thing…?"_ She thought.

Lynn fell to her knees. " _I was right…!_ " She thought as she began shaking. Lincoln halted his speech and ran over to Lynn. "Lynn what's wrong? Are you alright? Do you need-" He was silenced when Lynn forced him into another hug, yet unlike before this one was gentle like she was afraid she'd crush him.

She was still for a second, merely holding her brother, until she let out a barely audible whimper. Then, for the second time tonight, she cried. She cried and hugged her brother tighter. She ignored the pain in her arms and the blood that was lightly smudging her brother. " _He choose me!"_ She kept repeating in her head. She's never felt so good crying in all her life.

It was at this time their father came running out the house. Spotting both of his children, one of which was crying and bleeding, he picked them both up with strength that probably won't last long and ran to the front of the house.

Their family was relieved to see Lincoln, but their relief was short lived when they saw Lynn. Having been informed by Lisa that the smoke was all contained in the backyard, their focus was shifted into Lynn. They all began asking question while at the same time bandaging her small cuts. Lynn was soon caught in the 'sister medical ward' as they all essentially mummified her with all the bandages. She didn't mind though.

Lincoln meanwhile sat in the sidelines, secretly happy to NOT be on the receiving end of these treatments. Already things were going back to normal for them. Right before Lincoln could sneak back into his room, he felt a hand on his shoulder. "Lincoln, why were you operating the grill without any supervision?" Their mother's deadly cold voice asked. Lincoln gulped.

After a very nasty scolding, Lincoln laid on his bed, extremely tired from the night's events. Part of him still couldn't believe his choice, like he let a piece of himself go. However whenever these thoughts became big, a very loud snore brought him back to reality. One glance at his sister Lynn, who had insisted she spend the night with him, sleeping right beside him with a smile on her face was all that he needed to remind him of the choice he made. Whether it was a good choice or a bad choice remained to be seen.

Lincoln knew it wasn't over, not by a long shot. His sisters would surely be asking questions tomorrow and he'd have a lot of explaining to do. He'd probably need to repair his friendship with Clyde and his reputation at school. But it didn't matter to him. So long as they were happy, he was happy. And if he was wrong… Lincoln smiled. A definite crazed smile.

" _There's always plan B.."_

With that, Lincoln closed his eyes and went to sleep. Both the loud children sleeping soundly in the bed, which for some reason felt more stuffed than usual. Almost as if somebody hid something inside of it.

* * *

 **Author's Note = I have a confession to make. I completely forgot that the pets existed in this chapter. I had to throw in Charles in there at the last moment, but I think I did a good job with him. xD**

 **I know I said no prologue in the previous chapter, then I do nothing for the story for a year, but I wrote like 2 different versions BEFORE uploading chapter 4 and I found both of them being lackluster. Then like a month after deciding no prologue and uploading chapter 4, I get this idea for another 'chapter' and I'm writing it on and off for a few months cause I didn't think I'd finish it. Long story short I finish it, like it, edit it a bit, and publish it. So yeah surprise? xD Sorry if some of you are upset that I accidentally lied, but I'm sure more of you are happy about this.**

 **Anyways, I was trying to go for a 'things look up, but don't get too comfortable' ending there. In case you didn't understand, Lincoln faked burning his suit (he never said Lynn was correct). What did he burn you ask? Ehh I don't know, probably just one of his shirts or something. I was actually going to say that it was Bun-Bun who he burned, but I felt it would've been random and everyone would notice it's missing so I didn't include that. Tried to think of something else he could burn, but I couldn't think of anything. So yeah he stuffed the suit in his bed as a plan B sort of thing. Who knows what'll trigger him to resorting to that again? ;)**

 **So now for sure this is the end. I won't be writing anything more because I'm like 99% sure I won't be able to add another chapter without it seeming redundant (if this one wasn't already). I doubt I'll write a sequel since it'd be more of the same. Although seriously, if you wanna write your own version (or your own sequel) of this then by all means go on ahead. xD**

 **No comment responses since I got no clue where to start (like which ones I've already responded to since it's been a while) and I'm dead tired. Thank you all so much for reading the story. Special thanks to everyone who has PM'd me (such as Exotos135 and DaleJr.88). I seriously appreciate the reviews everyone.**

 **With that, enjoy your day/night, enjoy yourselves, and happy holidays! :D**


End file.
